Wages would begin to rise next year, ultimately reaching $15 from Washington state's minimum of $9.32 over three to seven years, depending on the business.
One councillor said the vote "sends a message heard around the world".
US minimum wage is $7.25, although 38 states have set higher levels.
The states of California, Connecticut and Maryland have recently passed laws increasing their respective wages to $10 or more in coming years.
Nationally, US President Barack Obama has called for a $10.10 federally-mandated minimum wage, which would require action by the divided US Congress.
Under the plan, firms with more than 500 employees nationally will be given at least three years to phase in the increase, those who provide health insurance subsidies would get four years and smaller businesses would be given seven years.
Click here to read more and to see a map of the U.S. with minimum pay spreads across different states.
$15 is a big jump. I'd be worried about discouraging businesses from moving to Seattle, especially when the state's minimum wage is less that $10.
ReplyDeleteI would agree with you Joe, but I think that increasing the wage over 3-7 years should mitigate the negative effects of such a steep increase.
ReplyDeleteThere are pros and cons to this decision. It is true that the big businesses will be hesitant to move to a place like this because they couldn't keep their wages low like in other places. However, the ideal America that we are moving towards, which is more equal in terms of income will be built on higher wages.
ReplyDeleteThis is great for inequality as wages have been stagnant for awhile as evidenced by video watched in class. I worry more for global businesses opening shop outside of the U.S. as a result of the higher wages.
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