SAN ANTONIO -- The Ramen noodle company, Maruchan, wants to bring 600 jobs to San Antonio.
But there's a catch: Most of the jobs will be at minimum wage. Some groups say that’s not good enough. The city has promised the Maruchan they won’t annex the plant for five years.
Now it’s Bexar County that has to come up with a proposal on incentives for the company to build here.
C.O.P.S. and Metro Alliance spoke out on the proposed Maruchan move to the south side. The groups don’t like the idea of the company paying only minimum wage for the majority of the jobs they will create here.
Sr. Gabriella Lohan of Sisters of the Holy Spirit said, “I do not think there is a need for these type of jobs. There are unskilled people in this community but they shouldn’t be earning 7.25 an hour.”
The county says they will be working on a proposal over the next couple of weeks. Bexar County judge, Nelson Wolff, says that it is better for people to have the company here to provide further opportunities and a start.
“It’s better for them to have a job and have an opportunity to progress and grow than to not have a job," he said.
Wolff also said groups will be allowed to offer input over the next few weeks before they decide how to proceed. The county feels that even though the company is bringing low-end wage jobs it is still a positive move for the city.
“Say we gave 60 percent phase-in over a period of years. Then we would get 40 percent of that revenue even though we gave 60 percent," said Wolff. "That’s 40 percent of something. We're getting zero percent of nothing now."
