Arbor Update

Ann Arbor Area Community News

Salary Discussions Legally Protected

Posted by Rob Goodspeed on 7. January 2005

(Cross posted at my personal blog)

A University of Michigan employee recently sent me an email pointing me to a 2003 article which reiterates that employees are allowed to discuss their salaries under the National Labor Relations Act.

“If you post the 2005 raises, post this message along with it (attached). I am a U of M employee. It is an article I cut out of the Detroit Free Press about a year ago and I would like to make a bunch of copies and stick it on tack boards around our department, but I know someone in administration will see it and take them all down. It’s called “Don’t be shy: Ask around to see if your pay is fair.” It goes on to say the federal law protects your right to inquire about your salary. I know administration tells everyone that they are NOT ALLOWED to discuss their salary, but this article sets it straight.:

The article, titled “Don’t be shy: Ask around to see if your pay is fair,” encourages employees to investigate how much their coworkers are getting paid, saying “don’t worry if your office has a policy forbidding salary discussions. Charles Craver, a labor expert at George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C., said your right to talk about your pay is protected under the National Labor Relations Act.”

> See 2003 U-M Employee Earnings
> See 2002 U-M Employee Earnings

The U-M Libraries has this information in their InfoDex:

FACULTY AND STAFF SALARY RECORD

The annual list of salaries of UM faculty and staff is available at the Information Center, 2nd fl, Graduate Library, in University Reserves on the 1st fl of the UGL, and at the UGL Reference Desk. Questions about details not covered by the salary list can be directed to Janet Gilson, Records and Information Services, 763-4502. List can be purchased by anyone for $28 plus $6 shipping if it is mailed. Michigan Daily sells a separate, different salary supplement that is spun out of the same database. The Daily’s list includes only faculty P&A and includes date of hire. It costs $8 and goes on sale sometime after the salary list comes out. A local blogger has posted the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 staff salary lists on the Web, as giant spreadsheets. But please note that neither is the most current salary list. For the 2003-2004 list see: http://www.goodspeedupdate.com/index.php?p=1499 For the 2002-2003 list see: http://www.goodspeedupdate.com/index-UM-earnings.htm

Brighton takes mixed-use to absurd extreme

Posted by Murph on 7. January 2005

One of the loudest mantras that any urban planning student relies upon is that “mixing uses is good for urban areas”. Instead of strip malls and apartment complexes separated from each other by pedestrian hostile areas, put the apartments above the stores, increasing residents’ access to businesses and reducing traffic and parking demand. According to an Ann Arbor News article, though, the City of Brighton has taken this idea a little to far, and is forcing out a watch seller who was trying to have part of his business on the second floor.

When the Crosswinds project was approved, the city had the deed restrictions – which it says limit commercial use of the property to the first floor while earmarking the second floor for residential – incorporated into the site plan.

The master deed adopted by the city states, “Live-Work Townhome Units in the Condominium may be used for residential purposes.”

”’May’ is, of course, permissive,” said Sensoli’s attorney, Hershel Fink of Detroit, in his response to the suit. “Nothing requires that it be used for residential purposes.”

In its suit, the city said its ordinance prohibits commercial use in residential dwellings without its approval, defining commercial use as “the purchase, sale, barter, display or exchange of goods, wares, merchandise or personal services.”

The city’s suit initially included two other businesses that had used upstairs areas for commercial purposes in the lawsuit, but has settled with them.

This planning student thinks that Brighton is missing the point.

[City Planning and Community Development Director Kim] Castle said although disputes like Girard’s grabs the headlines, the live-work unit concept has worked. “It’s a niche market, and either your business works within that space, or it doesn’t,” she said. “I think it’s worked out great.”

Rather than providing flexibility in zoning and allowing the development to evolve, it seems the city is simply imposing a different, but equally restrictive, definition of the space, perhaps making a marginal improvement, but nothing that deserves to be lauded as outstanding.

On the other hand, lawyer Fink appears to be tackling this case in a totally counter-productive fashion, stating, “you still can’t make unreasonable restrictions on someone else’s use of their property.” While this is true, the restrictions in question are well within the tried and accepted bounds of the zoning power. Instead, Fink would be wise to focus on convincing the city that the flexibility of allowing the upper-story space to be used either for commercial or residential purposes would be beneficial for the city – Girard Solani’s decision to move out of Brighton based on this incident seems like an excellent case study in the failure of the current rules.

Comment [2]

Tuesday: Land Bank forum with Detroit Project

Posted by Murph on 7. January 2005

38,000 City-Owned Vacant Lots in Detroit. What to do with them?

Open Forum on Land Bank and Land Development in Detroit
Sponsored by The Detroit Project

Come discuss the future of abandoned land in Detroit. Who should be able to claim this land? What can be done with it? How can the development of vacant property help to revitalize the city? Learn about the issue of abandoned property and the controversial legislation that addresses the future of these lots.

Speakers include Ponsella Hardaway, Executive Director of MOSES, and Margaret Dewar from the Taubman Center for Architecture and Urban Planning.

After the speakers’ presentation, there will be a question and answer session.

When: Tuesday, January 11, 2005 at 7:00 pm
Where: Michigan Union, Anderson Room C

Contact dp.learning@umich.edu with questions.

The Detroit Project’s Paul Mardirosian provides the following synopsis of the Detroit land banking idea, which was authorized by the State Legislature earlier this year:

A landbank is an authority that local municipalities in Michigan and other states can create to help expedite the process of land disposition. Cities such as Detroit have trouble luring developers because of long development timetables (up to 3 years), high development costs, and problems with multiple property claims and clouded title. A landbank consolidates the inefficient existing system, making it faster and cheaper for developers to complete projects. In addition, landbanks have the potential power to shape community development, meaning they can choose to hand over land at cheap prices to community development corporations and non-profits, lending to low-income housing and other community assets, instead of to short term land-speculators who hope to turn a profit but often do little to develop a property. Detroit is currently in the process of developing an intergovernmental agreement with the state, after which a landbank will potentially be created.

Detroit drops to third fattest

Posted by Murph on 7. January 2005

After being declared America’s Fattest City by Men’s Fitness magazine last year, Detroit has dropped to 3rd Fattest for 2005, behind Houston and Philly.

“First of all, congratulations … for getting down the list. I’m really proud of Detroit,” said Men’s Fitness Editor-in-Chief Neal Boulton. “Last time, you were the crown princes. You’re still on the list, but you’re breathing better air. Air quality went up in your town. That’s why we say the biggest losers on this list are the biggest winners, because they can lobby their mayors and governors to make it better.”

MCRI submits petition signatures

Posted by Dumi Lewis on 7. January 2005

The Free Press reports today that the Michigan Civil Rights Institute submitted more than the necessary 317,000 signatures needed to pursue the repeal of Affirmative Action via a ballot intiative. If the process goes as MCRI would like, the issue would come up for vote in November 2006.

Detroit labor activists call for people's unions

Posted by MarkDilley on 6. January 2005

via Michigan IMC:

“Trade Unions, once the champion of the working people, are now standing by helplessly while their share of the organized labor force has dwindled to 9%”

This is simply not true. Unions are trying to figure out how to organize within this nation state, while corporations can run their business/industries at a global level. This is a challenging problem!

I think people need to understand that unions operate on a couple of different principles.

1 – Service Model unionism – where a worker pays dues for union services such as filing grievances and negotiation contracts.

2 – Organizing Model unionism – where the power of the union is recognized to be in workers talking to each other about what is important at work and in their lives. Then using creative problem solving to get to solutions.

If your union is a service model – start talking to your coworkers about changing that. If your union is an organizing model, get involved!

Comment [15]

Phoenix, Voice Pick Up Boyle's Protest Beats

Posted by Ari Paul on 6. January 2005

This is a bit belated, but AU commenter David Boyle’s dissident music has been picked up by two of the nation’s most important alt-weekly newspapers.

Both the Boston Phoenix and the Village Voice have covered Boyle’s ‘George W. Pussy,’ a rap set to the beat of ‘Superfreak’ that blasts the regime of President George W. Bush.

Comment [4]

40 Barton Hills teens cited for drinking

Posted by Murph on 6. January 2005

On New Years Eve, Washtenaw County Sheriffs busted a party in Barton Hills, citing 40 teenagers for underage drinking.

A 17-year-old boy apparently hosted the party while his mother was in Florida, Egeler said. It’s unclear where the teenagers got the alcohol.

Police also found damage inside the home, including broken windows and lamps, but it wasn’t known who caused the damage, Egeler said.

After the police left, the teens threw a power ballad on the record player and a wacky cleaning montage ensued. The parents never knew what happened.

Well, not until reading about it in the paper, at least.

Comment [3]

U-M Snow Policies

Posted by Matt Hollerbach on 5. January 2005

Just in case, U-M has put this on their main page:
Storm closure policies

Pizza Hut giving 20% to Yankee Air Museum tomorrow

Posted by Murph on 4. January 2005

Seen on the livejournal ann_arbor_ypsi group:

There are six local Pizza Huts which will be donating 20% of tomorrows intake (January 4, 2005) to the Yankee Air Museum rebuilding fund. As many of you already know, the museum was destroyed in October by fire, and efforts were started almost the next day to raise funds for a new building.

This is a perfect opportunity to have pizza for dinner and know a portion of the money you spend will be going to a worthy cause.

The following six Pizza Huts are taking part in the fundraising:

2160 RAWSONVILLE ROAD IN BELLEVILLE (734) 483-8800
2407 WASHTENAW ROAD IN YPSILANTI (734) 434-1448
3045 CARPENTER ROAD IN YPSILANTI (734) 971-6500
44995 FORD ROAD IN CANTON (734) 981-0055
7520 NORTH WAYNE ROAD IN WAYNE (734) 261-7080
5630 JACKSON ROAD IN ANN ARBOR (734) 741-7200

A commenter at that site reminds that, if you don’t want to eat pizza (or don’t want to eat Pizza Hut pizza) tomorrow, you can make a direct donation at the Michigan Aerospace Foundation website.

Comment [3]

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