Gov. Tom Wolf calls for a “living wage.”
The push to increase the state’s minimum wage is renewed with Gov. Tom Wolf’s announcement to increase minimum wage from $7.25 to $12 an hour by July 1. Once minimum wage reaches $12, Wolf’s “living wage” proposal calls for incremental increases in the minimum wage until it hits $15 in 2025, reports the Tribune-Democrat.
“Pennsylvania must be a place where hard work is rewarded,” said Gov. Wolf. “But our minimum wage hasn’t changed in a decade and too many hardworking people are struggling to get by.”
But while Gov. Wolf’s call for action is aimed at helping Pennsylvanians, it may actually end up hurting them, according to NFIB’s Pennsylvania State Director Gordon Denlinger—especially those on Main Street.
“The business owner may not be able to raise prices because customers won’t pay a higher price,” Denlinger said. “The employer is [then] forced to reduce hours or eliminate jobs. You can’t change the nature of the marketplace and what people will pay for a product. If there isn’t enough coming into the business to cover the added labor costs, those lower-level jobs disappear. An October study of the Seattle situation showed that is just what can happen. As a result, it’s much harder for those at the very bottom of the pay scale to ever find work. That’s not good for employers or employees, and it’s not good for Pennsylvania’s economy. It actually hurts those it may be intended to help.”
