St. Paul, MN (Learfield Wire Services/TTWN Media Networks) - The Minnesota Senate has passed (35-to-31) a bill that would override paid sick leave ordinances in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, plus short-circuit some communities’ efforts to increase the minimum wage above the statewide level.

Roseville Democrat John Marty says those local ordinances help working people. “They’re struggling to pay the bills, to put food on the table, and they see — and I agree with them — that the state and federal governments haven’t stepped in to protect them,” Marty says.

saint Cloud Republican Jerry Relph supports the measure and objects that minimum wage and sick leave ordinances let local governments control the rest of the state. Relph says for example, “If I set a certain wage limit on someone in Minneapolis and I have a worker in Anoka doing the exact same job, do I raise the other one’s wage? Do I leave the city that’s imposing this on me?”

Governor Mark Dayton says he has concerns about the bill but is reserving judgment until the Senate and House agree on a final version.

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