Raimondo proposes minimum wage increase

GOV. GINA M. RAIMONDO has proposed an increase in the minimum wage from the existing $9 an hour to $10.10. / PBN PHOTO/ MICHAEL SALERNO
GOV. GINA M. RAIMONDO has proposed an increase in the minimum wage from the existing $9 an hour to $10.10. / PBN PHOTO/ MICHAEL SALERNO

(Updated, 5:30 p.m.)
PROVIDENCE – Gov. Gina M. Raimondo has proposed an increase in the minimum wage from the existing $9 an hour to $10.10, to help working families and strengthen the state’s middle class, according to a statement from her office.
Any increase would have to be authorized by the state’s General Assembly. In January, under its approval, the minimum wage in Rhode Island rose to $9, from $8.
The latest proposed increase will boost the state’s economy, argued Raimondo, speaking at a news conference.
“We want to strengthen and grow the middle class, and raising the minimum wage will boost our state’s economy by putting more spending money in the pockets of families who are most likely to spend it immediately,” Raimondo said.
Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed, D-Newport, said she looked forward to working with the governor.
“Increasing the minimum wage provides working families with the income they need to meet basic needs, and it generates economic activity,” she said.
House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello, D-Cranston, said he would carefully consider the proposal. “I have supported raising the minimum wage each of the last three years, and I am mindful that our neighboring states have been increasing their wages as well. I have always believed we should be competitive with our neighbors, including maintaining the standard of living for our citizens.”
The proposal drew criticism from an association of small businesses, the National Federation of Independent Business. Its Rhode Island director, Bill Vernon, called the proposal a “job killing measure.”
Rhode Island has increased the minimum wage in each of the last three years, he said, on the basis it will help low-income families. But in fact, Vernon argued, the increases typically benefit part-time wage earners from middle-class families.
“What the governor and other policymakers fail to understand is that the best way to help job seekers in the state is to make Rhode Island more hospitable to small businesses so that the private sector can grow and create jobs – jobs with higher than minimum wages,” he said.
According to Raimondo’s statement, the characteristics of low-wage workers defy traditional stereotypes. The Economic Policy Institute found: four out of five are 20 years or older; more than 40 percent have some level of college education; almost half are employed full time; and 41,000 children in Rhode Island live with a parent who would directly or indirectly benefit from an increase.
The proposal would bring Rhode Island in line with neighboring states in New England, according to Raimondo. Massachusetts is expected to increase its minimum wage to $10 in 2016 and $11 in 2017. Connecticut is scheduled to increase its minimum wage to $9.60 in 2016 and $10.10 in 2017.
As part of her announcement, Raimondo also called on the state Department of Labor and Training to make recommendations on how to strengthen wages for tipped workers, such as waiters and waitresses.

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