Louisiana
Lawmakers kill minimum pay raise in Louisiana, where one in five people live in poverty
Louisiana’s poorest workers won’t get a minimum wage increase and employers won’t be forced to address the pay gap for women after lawmakers killed bills to address income disparities in the state with the highest poverty rate in the United States.
State senators on the Labor Committee voted to halt Democratic New Orleans Sen. Gary Carter’s bills to create a state minimum wage higher than the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour and an equal pay measure for women. Both 5-2 votes fell along party lines with all five Republicans against the measures and two Democrats in favor.
Meanwhile, the full House advanced measures to reduce unemployment benefits (House Bill 119) and repeal a child labor law requiring employers to give a meal break to teenage workers (House bill 156).
Carter, whose Senate Bill 173 would have created a state minimumum wage at $10 per hour and gradually be raised to $14 per hour, argued that people “should not be living in poverty while working full time.”
But those who opposed the bill like Patrick Robinson with the Louisiana Association for Business and Industry testified that Carter’s bills would create hardships on businesses, trigger job cuts, increase costs to consumers and in the case of the equal pay measure create a hostile work environment.
“It’s bad policy,” Robinson said. “It would make our state less competitive. It would force businesses to cut work forces.”
But others who advocated for the minimum wage bill like Melissa Flournoy of Elevate Louisiana noted 34 other states have already established minimum wages higher than federal law, including northern neighbor Arkansas. Neighoring Texas and Mississippi don’t have state minimum wages.
“Arkansas has an $11 minimum wage and we didn’t hear stories of economic devatation in Arkansas,” Flournoy said. “The Legislature continues to demonize the poor. These invisible men and women toil in back-breaking jobs.”
Carter also said employers who pay what he described as “poverty wages” encourage workers to remain dependent on taxpayer assistance like Medicaid and food stamps even while working full time, placing a burden on the state budget.
“This is an opportunity for people to provide for themselves and their families,” Carter said.
About one in five Louisianians live in poverty.
Louisiana women in particular face bleak circumstances on nearly every front from poverty to life expectancy to education, according to a study released earlier this year.
The WalletHub study ranked Louisiana 50th among states and the District of Columbia as best places for women, ahead of only Oklahoma.
Last spring a WalletHub study ranked Louisiana as the worst state in America for working mothers with data showing moms here are shortchanged on everything from pay to childcare.
The Louisiana House Labor Committee has already rejected a minimum wage bill in the lower chamber, ending the effort for another year.
More: Louisiana women face bleak circumstances, according to new study ranking the state 50th
Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.
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Louisiana
Louisiana Tech vs Western Kentucky: Week 9 College Football Betting Odds, Prediction, Pick
Week 9 of the college football season kicks off on Tuesday night with a Conference USA battle between the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.
The Hilltoppers come into Tuesday looking to get back in the win column after losing 25-6 to FIU last week. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak and dropped them to 5-2 overall and 3-1 in CUSA.
The Bulldogs are also looking to bounce back from a loss after they fell to Kennessaw State 35-7 two weeks ago. The loss was their first in the CUSA and dropped them to 4-2 overall.
Stream Louisiana Tech vs. Western Kentucky
If you’re looking to get back in the swing of football season and need some betting advice for Tuesday’s matchup in Rustin, we’ve got you covered. Here are the latest odds for the game, courtesy of BetMGM.
Louisiana Tech vs Western Kentucky game odds:
All college football odds via BetMGM
- Spread: Louisiana Tech -3.5 (-115), Western Kentucky +3.5 (-1105)
- Money Line: Louisiana Tech NL, Western Kentucky NL
- Over-Under: Over 50.5 (-110), Under 50.5 (-110)
Louisiana Tech vs Western Kentucky prediction, pick:
Both of these teams were stymied in their last game and are desperate for a win on Tuesday night. They both are hoping to stay near the top of the conference, but a loss would likely drop them out of the hunt. Maverick McIvor has been good at quarterback for the Hilltoppers this year and he could be the x-factor. He did throw three interceptions in this last game, but he bounces back and gives Western Kentucky a huge road win.
Prediction: Western Kentucky 31, Louisiana 23
Best Bet: Western Kentucky +3.5, Over 50.5
Louisiana Tech vs Western Kentucky channel, start time, streaming:
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV Channel: CBS Sports Network
Live Stream: Paramount+
Get more betting analysis and predictions at Sportsbook Wire.
Contact/Follow @College_Wire on X and @College_Wires on Threads. Like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of college sports news, notes, and opinions.
The transformation of a 200-year-old cottage into a museum, a project to put a performance pavilion in a public park and the renovation of a Romanesque university hall were all recognized recently by the Louisiana chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
The 2025 AIA LA Design Awards were presented at the annual AIA Louisiana Conference of Architecture in Lake Charles.
Judges selected six Merit Awards, two Honor Awards and one Members’ Choice Award out of 62 entries reviewed by a jury of nationally recognized architects.
Winners included five firms based in New Orleans, one based in Baton Rouge and from Lafayette. A pair of New Orleans-based architects also came away with individual awards.
- RHH Architecture, of Baton Rouge, won the Members’ Choice Award for The Retreat at Quarters Lake, a grief and bereavement care facility arranged in a a protective configuration. Anchored by a butterfly garden at its center, the inward-facing design and pitched roofs help deflect sound and bring natural light into a tranquil setting. The winner of the Members’ Choice Award is voted on by all of AIA Louisiana’s membership.
Louisiana
Hayes’ KO return, Jackson’s 3 scores highlight SE Louisiana’s 49-0 win over Northwestern State
HAMMOND, La. (AP) — Brandon Hayes returned a kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown to open the second half, Deantre Jackson scored three times and Southeastern Louisiana blanked Northwestern State 49-0 on Saturday.
The Lions (5-2, 3-0 Southland), ranked No. 22 in the FCS coaches’ poll, posted a second consecutive shutout for the first time since 1960. They beat McNeese State 38-0 in their previous game.
SE Louisiana outgained the Demons 402-96 and held Northwestern State (1-6, 0-3) to 24 yards rushing.
The Lions scored 14 points in each of the first three quarters. Jackson rushed for two touchdowns and caught a 27-yard scoring pass from Carson Camp to open the scoring.
Jack Hunter only had to punt twice for SE Louisiana, but one was for 74 yards, second-longest in program history.
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