Proposal: Increase New York Minimum Wage To $8.50

Photograph by schankz / Shutterstock

Assemblyman Democrat Sheldon Silver introduced new legislation to increase New York State’s minimum wage today. The proposed law will increase the current $7.25 an hour to $8.50 an hour and become permanently fixed to the inflation rate by 2014. Silver said the increase would "give flight to the American dream."

The bump would put New York behind only Washington and Oregon and solidify us as having one of the highest minimum wage rates in the country. This would be the sixth increase that New York has seen, the last being in 2009 when it automatically increased by a dime-an-hour to meet the federal rate.

Silver first raised this idea in a January 4th speech when he suggested that an increase would affect 14% of the workforce, or 1.2 million people. At the time he stated, "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," the Daily News reports.

Senate Republicans and business leaders are concerned that the legislation may impede job growth, but Assembly Democrats maintain the issue is of top priority this year. And although supporters agree the climb is necessary because salaries have not kept up with rising consumer costs in recent years, others are skeptical the rise still won't be enough.

According to the National Employment Law Project, had minimum wage kept up with inflation, the standard should be at $10.39. Paul Sonn, the legal co-director of the project, tells the Times that the motion "is a good start, but really is not enough for New York's cost of living and New York’s economy."

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Carrie Dennis in News on January 30, 2012 4:55 PM

Comments [rss]

Charles Cestaro

Fearing a Minimum Wage Increase Will Be Bad for Business
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02...

randomtransplant

If the living wage is lower than the entitlement level for foodstamps, CHIP, reduced lunch, HEAP, ect...

Than you & I pay higher than the difference in interest to the national debt.

Cutting out those interest payments also has the nice "perk" of getting better service at the low-balling businesses we all patronize.

And, you know, you aren't exploiting people. That too.

Adam Moreira

This should be put in the trash---reason being those who earn minimum wage don't work hard enough to earn it.

BottomlessChips

The market should set wages. How can government know the best wage floor?

The grandstanding for $8.50/hr is such a load of crap. It's either clearly political or completely ignorant of economics.

Ian MacAllen

The only way "the market" can efficiently address wage issues is if labor is free to move across borders. Of course if that was the case, then all these minimum wage positions would be filled by central and south Americans willing to work for less.

If the government is going to interfere in the labor market by keeping out non-citizens, then there is a perfectly valid argument to interfere with minimum wages.

BottomlessChips

Why the scare quotes on market? I agree with the first part. I think we should have open borders as long as we don't have open welfare systems.

Why do you imply that having Mexicans, Haitians, and Dominicans work for less is a bad thing?

Blacks used to underbid whites in south before the Davis-Beacon Act. I think things worked out okay. More people were put to work. Companies could expand business at cheaper labor costs. Poor people who worked hard got an honest wage. That seemed to work out.

Ian MacAllen

I'm not saying its good or bad. But as of right now its illegal. Borders aren't open. And just like American labor can't move to India or China to work those factories.

And to have a truly open market of labor, laws pertaining to hours, disability, and safety need to go away too as they all interfere with the "free market."

Fundamentally, there is no free market in the real world; it only exists in the vacuum of the philosopher's laboratory.

Kimberley Truelove

Jesus, this is depressing.

Ian MacAllen

Its possible to consider that the minimum wage has actually hurt the American dream by creating a disincentive for workers to unionize. Since a full time minimum wage job is still below the poverty, perhaps a better alternative would be eliminating it entirely and encouraging unionization at large employers like McDonalds and Walmart.

seattlesnow

thats just about right for the rest of the state, y'all -ishers need to visit Buffalo or Rochester sometime just for s and giggle

kenorasis

Guess I'll have to be the giant dick.

Just because you raise the minimum wage by 17% doesn't mean that employers that hire min wage workers are going to increase their labor budgets 17%. That means fewer jobs -- for a lot of reasons, but let's just leave it at the simple math for now.
And just suppose someone actually is WILLING to work for less than min wage. Maybe he's a kid, an ex-con, a retiree, developmentally disabled, whatever. Maybe the opportunity to learn some real skills more than makes up for the low wage. Sorry! Even though you live in a free country, your elected nannies have decided you do have not right to enter into a contract that you think is a good deal.

And the people in those categories are just the sort of people who are screwed over by the minimum wage laws they're cheering for.

JoshNY

"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."

... but $17,500/year (the same number of hours at $8.25/hour) and you're rolling in dough?

Politburo

Having fun with that strawman?

JoshNY

Don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying the minimum wage shouldn't be higher, I'm just saying it's absurd for Silver to be suggesting that anyone will be able to "afford the cost of living today and be able to invest in their future" in NYC on $8.50/hr.

Nos Feratu

$8.50/hr, huh? Great! Now you only need to work 80 hours a week to live here. Of course if you want to be able to have some health care you'd have to work 120 hours at $8.50 per hour to afford it, but from what I hear, health care is over-rated.

m015094

http://www.nyc.gov/html/hhc/ht...

randomtransplant

You claim to be rich, and you are always claiming its not bad to be poor. Funny how that works.

CHIP and the programs like it which this page will ultimately link to don't accept single people without children.

m015094

When did I claim to be rich? I'll be in debt for the next couple of year paying off med school loans.

And what you wrote is 100% bullshit. Why are you trying to tell people that medical care programs aren't available for single poor people? I don't personally use HHC because I'm a Vet, but I know many single people that do. Call the hospital if you don't believe me.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/hhc/do...

(212) 939-8086 Ask for Mr. McDonald.

It sucks knowing the truth.

randomtransplant

"HHC options program is for Parents".

As somebody whose worked in an office which signed beneficiaries up for subsidized health care before, I call reasonable doubt to this claim that your a med school grad.

m015094

Reading comprehension fail. And you obviously didn't call the number I provided.

Why are you trying to mislead people?

Read page 2.

Here's the actual quote for you:

"The New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC) provides health care for EVERYONE......HHC Options program is for PATIENTS who do not have insurance, or have limited insurance coverage."

http://www.nyc.gov/html/hhc/do...