[NYAPRS Enews] DN: Silver to Propose Minimum Wage Hike to $8.50/hr

[Harvey Rosenthal]

New York State Democrats Will Propose Hike In State Minimum Wage To
$8.50 An Hour

Speaker Sheldon Silver Confirms Automatic Increases Will Be Part Of
Proposal

BY Kenneth Lovett
<http://www.nydailynews.com/authors?author=Kenneth%20Lovett>   New York
Daily News January 29, 2012

 

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver will unveil a plan on Monday to increase
the state's minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.50 an hour.

Assembly Democrats Monday will propose a hike in the minimum wage to
$8.50 an hour, the Daily News has learned.

The plan also will include a provision for automatic increases going
forward that are tied to inflation, according to sources.

The state's current minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. It has been increased
five times since 2000--the last time in 2009, when it automatically went
up a dime-an-hour to meet the federal rate.

Raising it to $8.50 an hour would give New York one of the highest rates
in the country, only behind such states as Oregon and Washington.

Supporters say it is needed because salaries for low-wage earners have
not kept up in recent years with rising consumer costs, while businesses
warn it could further hurt a battered economy.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver
<http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Sheldon+Silver>  wouldn't provide
specifics, but confirmed to he News that his majority would unveil its
plan on Monday at the Capitol.

Silver, who first raised the idea on Jan. 4 in a speech just before Gov.
Cuomo <http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Andrew+Cuomo> 's
state-of-the-state address, said at the time an increase would affect
14% of the workforce, or 1.2 million people.

He called an increase the top priority this year for the Assembly Dems.

"Frankly, it is absurd to expect anyone - let alone a working family -
to afford the cost of living today and be able to invest in their future
on a salary of $7.25 an hour; or $15,000 a year," Silver said at the
time.

Cuomo last week had expressed openness to an increase this year.

He said he has long supported minimum wage increases, but held off
taking a position on one this year until a specific plan is proposed.

Senate Republicans are considered the greatest obstacle.

They have long opposed hikes to the minimum wage, saying it hurts job
growth.

On Sunday, Senate GOP spokesman Scott Reif
<http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Scott+Reif>  didn't take a position.

"Senate Republicans will continue to promote policies that encourage job
growth and make New York a more business-friendly state, just as we did
last year partnering with Gov. Cuomo," Reif said.

Mayor Bloomberg <http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Michael+Bloomberg> ,
a big-time backer of Senate Republicans, has said he supports a minimum
wage hike.

Stuart Appelbaum <http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Stuart+Appelbaum> ,
president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, hailed
any hike to worker wages, calling it "an important step forward."

"The way there can be an economic recovery is to put more money into the
hands of the people who have very little," Appelbaum said. "Every penny
they get they are going to spend. It comes back to the economy."

But many business groups have argued it would lead to job losses and
make New York less competitive with neighboring states.

Eighteen states, including Massachusetts and Connecticut, currently have
higher minimum wage rates than new York.

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/money/york-state-democrats-propose-hike-
state-minimum-wage-8-50-hour-article-1.1013708

 

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