ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Tens of thousands of Minnesota
workers have big raises coming their way, courtesy of a new minimum wage
law that Gov. Mark Dayton signed Monday, which will take the state from
one of the nation’s lowest rates to among the highest.
At a
ceremony in the Capitol’s Rotunda, Dayton hailed the hourly jump of more
than $3 spread over the next few years as providing "what’s fair" for
hard work put in. He said he has been stunned by GOP resistance — it
passed the Legislature with only Democratic votes — to increasing the
guaranteed wage from $6.15 per hour now to $9.50 by 2016 and then tie it
to inflation.
"We’re not giving people any ticket into the upper-middle class," Dayton said. "We’re
giving them hope."
Minnesota
goes from having one of the nation’s lowest minimums to among the
highest. With federal wage legislation stuck in Congress, states are
rushing to fill the void. California, Connecticut and Maryland have
passed laws pushing their respective wages to $10 or more in coming
years, and other states are going well above the federal minimum of
$7.25 per hour. Not all Minnesota workers have qualified for the federal
minimum, which is required if someone engages in an interstate
transaction such as swiping a credit card at the cash register.
For
large Minnesota employers, mandatory hourly pay will climb to $8 in
August, $9 a year later and $9.50 in 2016. Smaller employers that have
gross sales below $500,000 will also have to pay more, though their rate
reaches only $7.75 per hour by 2016. There are also carve-outs for teen
workers or those getting trained into new jobs.
All told, some 325,000 workers could be in line for a raise at some point during the phase-in period.
Jacquita
Berens, a single mother of three from Robbinsdale, said she’s been
working three jobs to barely get by. Standing next to Dayton, she said
the hike will give her more money for groceries, gas and other
essentials and maybe allow her to afford extracurricular activities for
the kids.
"I work incredibly hard but constantly fall behind,"
Berens said. "Those of us working low-wage jobs are willing to work
hard. We want to get ahead so we are not in survival mode."
Business
groups, such as those representing restaurants and retail shops, have
warned that Minnesota would be out of step with its neighbors that are
all at $7.25 per hour. Republican Rep. Pat Garofalo, R-Farmington,
called the increase "irresponsible" and argued it will drive up
unemployment as companies adjust.
The law authorizes automatic
raises in the years to come that will compensate for inflation. Unless
state officials take steps to suspend the raises, minimum wage pay could
rise by up to 2.5 percent annually beginning in 2018. Those increases
could be suspended if rough economic conditions sweep in, but catch-up
raises can be ordered later.
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