Hard work is a West Virginia value most of us hold dear. But for West Virginians struggling to get by and facing new demands on their time by employers a "fair workweek" law would help them.

Protecting our right to clean air and water unites all West Virginians. The WV Supreme Court recently upheld a property owner’s right to keep drillers off their land. But they also told property owners it was too bad if their lives and property values were upended by the fracking industry.

West Virginians take care of each other and that means lifting barriers to taking care of families, communities and individuals affected by the addiction crisis.

David Perry, president of the West Virginia Board of Education had strong words recently about attacks on public education in the state: “I am dumbfounded why business leaders within our state think it is productive to attack public education in order to push a political agenda that benefits the private sector and is fueled by outside interest groups.” 

Former West Virginia school teacher Sarah Krause is leaving the state to find work in a more teacher-friendly state. Her recent Charleston Gazette-Mail column should be read by every state legislator.

As Gov. Jim Justice and Senate President Mitch Carmichael spar over their differing versions of “education reform,” there’s one aspect of public education in West Virginia that’s being forgotten. Our schools are the meeting places for our communities. West Virginia needs to focus on building up our public schools and on training, hiring, and adequately paying its great teachers, not on lining out-of-state, for-profit charter school operators’ pockets.

We pass on this story by The Intercept on West Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stephen Noble Smith because we think its is interesting how the online news magazine has framed Smith’s campaign.

West Virginians look after one another and this extends to youth in foster families, too.

Has West Virginia really benefited from laws that make it difficult for working people to improve wages and working conditions? Sometimes, conservative lawmakers seek to save money, but end up making things worse in the process.

What happened when Big Coal picked up the dinner tab in this year’s legislative session? They got a big old dessert for their investment.