Voters will decide how to handle a huge issue for small businesses this fall
This Controversial Issue Just Made It on to Washington Voters’ Ballot
This fall, Washington might join a list
no small business owner wants to be a part of.
On Nov. 8, Washington voters will
decide whether they want to increase the hourly statewide minimum wage to
$13.50 over the next four years. The minimum wage is currently $9.47.
Initiative 1433 garnered 345,907 signatures—surpassing the requirement of
246,372 signatures necessary to get a petition on the ballot.
If passed, the measure would also
mandate one hour of paid sick leave for every 40 hours an employee works, the
Puget Sound Business Journal reported. The ballot measure would not affect
Seattle because the City Council voted to increase the minimum wage to $15 in
2014, according to the Puget Sound Business Journal.
Many business owners believe that
wages and benefits should be left to the discretion of individual businesses,
and they say the measure would do more harm than good for Washington workers.
“A law to increase the minimum wage without providing
support for starting jobs, or those that get young adults their first work
experience, will hit farming operations, particularly smaller ones, and their
employees hard,” Farm Bureau CEO John Stuhlmiller told Capital
Press.
Business owners are worried that a higher minimum wage
would lead to a decrease in hiring or fewer hours for existing employees.
“We want to create opportunities
for everyone to succeed without jeopardizing job retention and growth,
particularly in rural communities,” Association of Washington Business
President Kris Johnson wrote in a
statement.
