Briefing: Raising The Minimum Wage
Bay State lawmakers are considering raising the minimum wage in Massachusetts, which hasn't changed since the onset of the Great Recession in 2008. The wage is $8 an hour, the eighth highest (tied with California) among the 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. (Washington has the highest, at $9.19.) The federal minimum is $7.25, which most states follow.
Gov. Deval Patrick and State Treasurer Steven Grossman support a hike, suggesting it will help business by increasing consumer spending. But critics warn that increasing the wage now will stifle growth, slow hiring and make Massachusetts less competitive with neighbors like New Hampshire.
Why increase the minimum wage now?
To catch up to inflation, according to State Sen. Marc Pacheco, D-Taunton, who has filed legislation to raise the wage. He said a minimum-wage worker in 1968 would be earning $10.58 an hour today when accounting for inflation, or an extra $5,000 a year.
How high might it go — and when?
Pacheco's bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Antonio Cabral, D-New Bedford, would raise the minimum wage to $11 per hour over three years, and index the wage to inflation moving forward. Rep. Denise Provost, D-Somerville, has proposed to go further, to $12 per hour by 2015.
What’s the opposition’s argument?
Business groups believe an increase in the wage will hurt more than it helps. For example, Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, which represents 3,500 small businesses, said many employers can't afford it, and raising the wage will go against the state's priority of job growth.
How strong are the chances of an increase?
With Patrick's support and an overwhelmingly Democratic legislature, chances are good the wage will go up. Yet House Speaker Robert DeLeo, who earlier this year strongly opposed Patrick's plan to raise the income tax to 6.25 percent (with a lowering of the sales tax to 4.5 percent), wants information on the potential economic impact of a hike before a vote.
But at the same time, the retailers group and the House Republican leader have indicated a willingness to negotiate on a higher wage as part of a broader discussion that could encompass government reforms to benefit business and repeal of a law that requires retailers to pay employees time and a half to work Sundays.
Material from State House News Service was used in this report.
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