Amid the last of three base wage increases, the push for $15 begins again.
Will Massachusetts Approve $15 Minimum Wage?
The state minimum wage is set to increase to $11 per hour on Jan. 1, 2017, which is the final of three incremental increases implemented by a 2014 bill. However, labor groups won’t be stopping there.
House Speaker Robert DeLeo expects that the Legislature will debate another increase to the state’s base wage in 2017, reported WGBH News, and advocates are pushing for an incremental hike to $15 per hour over the next few years. The Fight for $15 movement held rallies around the country at the end of November 2016, including in Massachusetts.
Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, told The Salem News that the minimum wage hikes already in place are hurting the state’s retail sector as well as consumers with longer lines, fewer employees, and poorer service.
Bill Vernon, NFIB/MA state director, was also quoted by The Salem News: “We really need to talk about the downsides of increasing the minimum wage, like fewer jobs for young people and jobs not being created. That’s seldom part of the discussion.” Vernon also noted that talks about increasing wages past $11 per hour should include repealing the law that mandates time-and-a-half pay for retail workers on Sundays.
NFIB/MA and other business groups will be fighting against any proposed minimum wage increases in 2017.
