Search
Activists, union members, and a worker who says she is owed tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid overtime protested in front of an Iowa City burger restaurant Monday. Rita, who requested Starting Line not use her last name, said she worked for the past 13 years at...
Although the 2022 Iowa legislative session has gone over 100 days—the traditional end date— there's still no conclusion in sight. “Just because they’re narrowing the number of issues that are left to be determined does not mean that they are near an agreement,” Senate...
Turning Point USA, a far-right student organization, is branching out to Iowa middle and high schools. This expansion includes new chapters in Mason City Johnston, and Pleasant Valley. Some parents in the Johnston School District recently spoke out against the group,...
When Hy-Vee unexpectedly dismissed 121 corporate employees in March, some questioned if the West Des Moines company violated the state and federal WARN Act provisions. The grocer got around this accusation by saying it offered 102 of the mostly headquarters and IT...
First-term Rep. Ashley Hinson will have closer scrutiny over her early voting record from a new effort launched last week in Iowa. The Unrig Our Economy campaign will highlight where Hinson, a Republican, stands on economic issues impacting working-class Iowans....
After passing the US House of Representatives more than a year ago and languishing in the Senate ever since, the PRO Act is getting a renewed push now, particularly from unions who want to modernize the nearly 90-year-old labor law. Here's a quick refresher on what it...
Wednesday afternoon, Republicans in both chambers of the Iowa Legislature supported an amendment to reduce unemployment benefits from 26 to 16 weeks. GOP senators added a one-week waiting period before those benefits are delivered in their version. The amended bill,...
The labor strike at Eaton-Cobham Mission Systems in the Quad Cities ended Tuesday night after an agreement was reached between workers and management. More than 400 workers affiliated with Machinists Union Locals 388 and 1191, collectively District 6 and based at the...
The movement for women to win the right to vote was long in Iowa and the rest of the Midwest. While progress seemed likely at some points, it was never fully realized until Iowa voted to ratify the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution in 1919. Many obstacles stood in...
Long overdue improvements to the US Postal Service (USPS) passed the US Senate on Tuesday, bringing the promise of stability and reform to a service that has struggled financially for years. Though the bipartisan vote didn't receive much local news coverage, the...
There were more than 50 education bills introduced during this year’s Iowa legislative session, including proposals to place surveillance cameras in public school classrooms, ban books, jail teachers, and take funding away from public schools to support private...
Iowa Senate Republicans passed HF 2416 on Wednesday, a bill that bans transgender girls from playing school-sponsored sports entirely. The measure passed along party lines, 31-17, and will more than likely be signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds. The main argument Republicans...
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds was given a national platform Tuesday and she used a portion of it to elevate the parental rights argument Republicans nationwide are using to remake public schools more to their liking. Reynolds, who is expected to announce her intention to run...
Tuesday night, Gov. Kim Reynolds gave the Republican rebuttal to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. She mostly filled that rebuttal with national GOP talking points, which a lot of Democrats jumped on as they reacted to her speech....
Henry Riding—spelled Ridings in some instances—was born into enslavement in Missouri and died as the wealthiest Black man in Sioux City. Born in Lexington, Missouri, in 1839, Riding literally fought for his freedom as a Union soldier during the Civil War. He served in...
In 1900, something special started to grow in Southeast Iowa and it developed into a paradise for Black Americans. For 27 years Buxton, Iowa, served as a racial utopia where segregation was not officially or socially enforced. Black citizens had the same opportunities...
In Iowa history, trailblazers are aplenty. For an example of both extraordinary Black Iowans and women, one doesn’t have to look very hard to find Willie Stevenson Glanton. Born in Arkansas, Glanton moved to Iowa in 1951 right after her wedding to Luther T. Glanton...
Chuck Grassley was honest when asked if he would join former President Donald Trump’s new social media platform, Truth Social. “I hope they’ll have me,” Grassley said. “I don’t know if they will or not.” Iowa’s senior US Senator was asked the question during an...
An Iowa union member had a warning to Iowa Republicans pushing for a flat tax rate. “This bill contains glitter—some may see as improvement—but beware, the flax tax benefits the wealthiest of taxpayers by far the most," said Pete Hird, secretary-treasurer of the Iowa...
Iowa unions came out swinging against a new proposal from Gov. Kim Reynolds that would substantially alter unemployment benefits some argue to the detriment of seasonal and low-wage workers. A few changes HF 631 would bring to unemployment include: Creating a one-week...
Corporations would no longer be able to cut off health insurance for striking workers under a new bill introduced by Rep. Cindy Axne of Iowa. The Striking Workers Healthcare Protection Act would make it illegal for companies to take away or alter workers’ health...
A Fairfield city official went on a conspiracy-theory fueled tangent at Monday’s city council meeting after the city was asked to approve a statement of intent supporting diversity and equity. The statement would not be legally enforceable and was drafted by the...
In her Condition of the State address Tuesday, Gov. Kim Reynolds made mixed gestures to Iowa educators. On one hand, she thanked them for their hard work during the pandemic. On the other, she highlighted policies that will shift funds away from public schools and...
Miranda Bratland is blunt about why Iowa is experiencing a teacher shortage: “It’s a sinking ship.” “I love teaching,” said Bratland, a third-grade teacher in Newton. “I love working with kids. I’m sick of the red tape. We’ve been asked to do the impossible during...
In recent years, some Republicans in the Iowa Legislature have set their sights on legalizing discrimination against LGBTQ Iowans by removing parts of the Iowa Civil Rights Act. LGBTQ advocates and Republican officials themselves have hinted these efforts may go even...
Roads, bridges, broadband, and sidewalks: That’s just a taste of what Iowa mayors are excited to see come to their cities with the passage of President Joe Biden’s infrastructure bill. Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act last Monday after it passed...
When asked what career fields will have a lot of good-paying jobs to fill after the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Craig Levine’s answer was simple: “All.” “Everything, I mean from the person doing the dirt work to clear up the old highway to...
Iowa labor leaders expect a tremendous boost in construction work and the economy following the signing of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which will bring about $5 billion in federal money to the state. “This is the greatest single piece of legislation...
In a surprising development today, the Republican Party has come out against the UAW strike and has begun to attack striking workers. The National Republican Senatorial Committee, which fully backs and works closely with Sen. Chuck Grassley's reelection campaign, put...
A guest op-ed from Ann Brown, treasurer for Amara Andrews campaign for mayor of Cedar Rapids The position of mayor of Cedar Rapids is one of the highest offices in the state of Iowa that, by all accounts, SHOULD be held by a Democrat, but hasn’t been for almost 12...
