Annapolis
(April 2, 2014) – A
vote by the Senate Finance Committee to approve a big increase in the minimum
wage will make it harder for small business owners to make a living in Maryland
and even harder for them to hire new workers, said the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).
“We
strongly urge the full Senate to reject this bill because there are very few
small employers in Maryland who can absorb a 40 percent increase in the cost of
labor,” said NFIB Maryland State
Director Jessica Cooper.
The bill
would increase the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10.10 per hour. That’s a 39 percent increase and it won’t
affect just entry-level workers, said Cooper.
“Most small
businesses already pay more than the current minimum wage but many don’t pay
$10.10 per hour,” she said. “This will
inflate wages all the way up the scale for small businesses, some of which are
already operating on a shoe string.”
Small
businesses in the restaurant and tourist industries will be hit especially
hard, said Cooper, since they often rely on part-time teenage workers whose
experience doesn’t justify the increase.
“The
teenage unemployment rate is already three times the national average and it
will get worse in Maryland if this bill passes,” she said. “Hiring a new employee is a financial and
legal risk for any employer because it’s a long term commitment. This will price teenagers and young workers
out of the jobs market because they don’t have the experience or the maturity
to compete with older workers.”
Cooper
warned the Senate that raising the minimum wage now would put Maryland in at a
competitive disadvantage.
“Small
business investors don’t have to look very far beyond the Maryland border to
find lower costs and our regional competitors like Virginia, Pennsylvania and
Delaware will have a better story to tell if this bill passes.”
For more
information about NFIB, please log on to www.nfib.com. Follow Jessica on Twitter @SmallTownCoops.
