Minnesota makes history with largest minimum wage hike
Gov. Mark Dayton signed into law the largest minimum wage increase in state history Monday, giving raises to more than 325,000 Minnesotans and making good on a signature Democratic pledge during an election year.
The move to a $9.50 base hourly wage catapults the state from one of the lowest minimum wages to one of the highest once it is fully phased in by 2016. The state’s base wage will be tied to inflation starting in 2018, ensuring the buying power of the state’s lowest-paid workers keeps better pace with the cost of living.
“Minnesotans who work full time should be able to earn enough money to lift their families out of poverty, and through hard work and additional training, achieve the middle-class American dream,” the DFL governor said, surrounded by legislators, workers and labor leaders at a ceremonial bill-signing in the State Capitol rotunda. “These are people, good Minnesotans all over the state, who just want to work and get paid something that is fair.”
The sharp wage hike puts Minnesota at the forefront of a major initiative by President Obama, who has failed to persuade Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 and instead is pressing his case state by state. The first wave of increase starts Aug. 1, when Minnesota’s minimum wage rises to $8 per hour.
“I applaud Governor Dayton and the Minnesota Legislature for increasing their state’s minimum wage and giving more hardworking Minnesotans the raise they deserve,” President Obama said in a statement.
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Minnesotans who are making the state’s minimum wage say the raise will alleviate some of the financial strain of living on so little.
“I have always been in this struggle to earn a better wage,” said Lucila Dominguez Velasquez, who works in the cleaning industry. “The cost of food, of rent, public transportation have always been going up.”
Rachel Shelton [TakeAction Minnesota leader], of New Hope, worked for years at or near the minimum wage.
“Fifty to $100 a month might not seem like a lot to most people, but it helps to pay your food and helps to pay your rent on time,” said Shelton, 49. “It means a lot. It can save you a lot of sleepless nights, because it is always such a struggle.”
