In 2021, Kelsi Sievering was part of the team that opened a Kentucky Refugee Ministries (KRM) office in Covington. The organization had long had a presence in Lexington and in Louisville, where it opened its first office in 1990. As its name suggests, KRM works with people who have been forced to leave their country…
We are just three months out from the presidential election, and immigration policy remains a topic of great interest to voters nationwide. Fifty-seven percent of Americans believed dealing with immigration should have been a top policy priority for the current president and Congress this year, according to a Pew Research Center analysis from March. In…
This summer, news outlets have reported on an influx of Mauritanian refugees to Cincinnati, specifically to the neighborhoods Lockland and Mt. Airy. Recent media attention has focused on asylum seekers from this West African country, but we are in the midst of a broader immigration boom as people from around the world settle in the…
Headlines are filled with news about immigration. We learn of contentious debates about the U.S. and Mexico border. We read about travesties in Congo, Sudan, Haiti, Ukraine and Gaza, and the desperate conditions that force people to flee their homelands and seek peaceful lives elsewhere. Too often these stories feel like something happening elsewhere, in…
Earning a living wage can make a huge difference in people’s lives. Two people agreed to share their stories with Health Care Access Now (HCAN). They told us how they approached finances (and the way it made them feel) when they worked low-paid jobs and after they attained positions that paid a living wage. “I…
Health insurance and employment are tied together in the United States. What that translates to is different tiers of health insurance benefits and expenses for different people. Here is a breakdown of the various types of insurance that people may use: These plans can vary widely. Employers may require that employees pay for a portion…
“Everyone has problems at work,” says Brennan Grayson, Director, Cincinnati Interfaith Workers Center (CIWC). Those problems might be small or big—a conflict with a coworker or being passed over for a promotion because of racial discrimination, as examples. “But when you’re an immigrant, work issues can be vastly complicated. Do you and your boss speak…
In the six years between 2009 and 2014, 193 Cincinnati employers were found to have violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The six-year total of minimum wages, overtime wages, and civil monetary damages recovered across those cases was $3,679,911. More than 6,000 workers were affected.* “Wage theft occurs when employers refuse to pay promised…
Imagine a community with vibrant, safe, and inclusive neighborhoods in which all people live in healthy homes with equitable access to resources and opportunities to pursue their dreams. Nearby businesses serve everyone. The area is safe and walkable, with green space for recreation and exercise. That’s the kind of place that The Community Builders (TCB) envision when they…
The federal minimum wage was established in 1938 as a part of the Fair Labor Standards Act. In that year, the minimum wage was $0.25/hour, which translates to $5.33/hour today. Over the years, the federal minimum wage has been raised regularly: Since 2009, there have been no raises to minimum wage. That means that someone…
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