By Juliana Kaplan
Business Insider, July 19, 2021
The number of states set to raise their minimum wage to $15 an hour is now in the double digits, as Delaware joins the club.
"Delawareans who go to work full time shouldn't be living in poverty," Gov. John Carney said in a statement after signing it into law on Monday. ...
"I think every time a state like Delaware joins the movement, it's going to encourage other states to do so," [Courtney] Sunborn said. "And I hope that what the other states will see is that this will be a successful transition for Delaware, businesses and encourage other states to join the movement."
Courtney Sunborn, owner of Ecolistic Cleaning in Lewes, Delaware, and a vocal advocate for raising the minimum wage, is part of advocacy group Business for a Fair Minimum Wage. She said her business has paid a "living wage" since it began. In an op-ed for Delaware Online, she wrote that none of her employees will make less than $15 by the end of the year.
"I have had such great success with paying living wages. My business ... has been in business for 18 years, and over those 18 years, we've had growth every single year, excluding last year due to COVID," Sunborn said, adding: "The financial gains each year, I believe, are in part due to me paying employees living wage."
She attributes that to paying less for marketing due to happier employees and customers, as well as lower employee turnover.
Copyright 2021 Insider