S15 / A15 would:
- immediately boost the current minimum wage from $8.38 to $10.10
- annually increase the minimum wage by $1 until it reaches $15 per hour
- maintain annual cost of living increases
A radical minimum wage hike would crush many small businesses who are adjusting to constantly changing regulations and other labor requirements at the state and local level in New Jersey. Already, New Jersey is known for having high numbers of residents leaving the state for better jobs and lower taxes and an extreme minimum wage hike like this will certainly only encourage more residents to leave the state and take their businesses with them.
Not only will this or any additional minimum wage hike in New Jersey damage small business owners, but it will also hurt the very people it’s aimed at helping. The NFIB Research Foundation released a study highlighting the devastating impact existing legislation will have if the minimum wage rate is raised to $15. According to the study, the long-term result of the labor cost increase associated with $15 an hour minimum wage would lead to 70,000 lost New Jersey jobs over the next decade. Additionally, the Research Foundation found that because the bill ties future increases to inflation once it hits $15 an hour, New Jersey’s minimum wage rate would exceed $17 an hour by 2027 if inflation continues the trend that it has experienced since the great recession.
Examples of the detrimental effects of minimum wage hikes are abundant. Three West Coast cities that raised their minimum wage are now paying the price in job losses. Within the past year, about 2,500 restaurant jobs were lost in the San Francisco metro area along with 2,200 hotel jobs in the LA area. Between January and June, Seattle lost about 1,300 restaurant jobs.
Press:
- Politico New Jersey: Dems’ fight for $15 wage could dominate gubernatorial campaign
- NewsWorks: N.J. Senate committee to take up $15 minimum wage
- NFIB Member Joe Olivo spoke to Bill Spade on NJ 101.5 about the damage the $15 minimum wage would have on small businesses
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