Oregon's minimum wage workers will receive a 30-cents-per-hour raise beginning next Jan. 1, bringing it to $7.80 per hour.
Oregon's minimum wage currently is the second highest in the nation, behind Washington's $7.63 per hour. Washington is expected to adjust the rate for inflation at the end of September.
"The rising cost of living makes a serious dent in many workers' paychecks, but it hits the lowest paid in the worst way," said Oregon Labor Commissioner Dan Gardner, who announced the wage hike.

The legacy of the civil rights movement and its push toward equality for all will be celebrated next month when the Urban League of Portland hosts its annual Equal Opportunity Day Dinner.
The dinner, which features keynote speaker Janice Bryant Howroyd, founder and CEO of Act*1 Group and the presentation of this year's Equal Opportunity Awards, takes place at 6:45 p.m. Oct. 3 in the Grand Ballroom of the Portland Hilton Hotel, 921 S.W. Sixth Ave. A no-host reception begins at 5:45 p.m. KOIN TV anchor and reporter Ken Boddie will emcee the evening's festivities.

Felicia Allender-Brant, right, executive director of the Sabin Community Development Corp., and Craig Fondren, its economic empowerment manager, place their bids at the group's recent 15th Anniversary Celebration and Silent Auction.

Anthony P. Armstrong, of Allstate Insurance, addresses the crowd Sept. 14 at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new playground at James John Elementary School in St. Johns. The Allstate Foundation sponsored the playground along with the James John Parent-Teacher Association.

After four years of planning and renovation, Portland Center Stage welcomes Portlanders to a community celebration of its new home, The Gerding Theater at the Armory.
To commemorate the rebirth of this 115-year-old Portland fixture, Portland Center Stage and Portland Family of Funds are hosting a street party from noon to 5 p.m. Oct. 1 on Northwest Davis Street between Ninth and 11th avenues. Admission is free; food and beverages will be available at modest prices.

The Rev. Ellis H. Casson, left, has a word with James Kelly, CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Urban League, at the seventh annual Tabor 100 Captains of Industry Gala, held Sept. 16 at the  Washington Trade and Convention Center. Kelly was one of six people presented with the Crystal Eagle Leadership Award by the Tabor 100.

OLYMPIA—Many of the roughly 9,000 inmates released from the state's prisons each year re-offend and get locked up again. Though it's not a problem unique to Washington, the state's secretary of corrections says he plans to push for reforms designed to reduce the number of repeat offenders.
"We know how to lock people up, know how to incapacitate," said Harold Clarke. "But for me, the true measure of public protection is what the individual does after release. Because then the public becomes vulnerable."
Clarke's wish list includes revamping prison psychological assessments, education, job-training and treatment programs. "If we can help prop them up — prepare them — I think most of these folks will choose law-abiding lives," he said.

Men who might be worried about prostate cancer have a solution: "Let's Talk About It."
African American men have the highest rate of prostate cancer in the country and are more likely to die of the disease than are men of any other race. The "Let's Talk About It" campaign is meant to raise awareness about prostate cancer in the Seattle area.

Under a proposal supported by Mayor Greg Nickels, Seattle's ethics code would be relaxed for members of 29 advisory boards, from the Planning Commission to the Marijuana Policy Review Panel. The Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission also supports the proposal. "It's a balancing act," said Bob Mahon, a commission member. Nickels and commission members point out the volunteer panels were created to advise city officials and don't have the final vote on any issues.

Edward P. Jones, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "The Known World," answers questions after reading from his new collection of stories, "All Aunt Hagar's Children," Sept. 18 at the Central Library in Downtown Seattle.