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By Jacob Comer and Brian Mastre
6 News WOWT (NBC), Omaha, Sep. 6, 2022 

Nebraska residents will be voting on two initiatives this November. According to Secretary of State Bob Evnen, election officials have verified the signatures for two different ballot initiatives: the Voter ID Constitutional Amendment and Nebraska Minimum Wage Statute. ...

The Minimum Wage Statute would raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2026. ...

Some businesses say the wage increase would directly benefit thousands of Nebraska residents.

Raygun Clothing employs 110 people in all sorts of different jobs across a number of midwest communities. From here in Omaha in the Old Market, to Kansas City, Chicago and four cities in Iowa - including Des Moines and Iowa City.

The owner Mike Draper says he starts his employees at $14 an hour, and that goes to $15 an hour on Oct. 1.

He says raising the minimum wage is less about bringing it up arbitrarily - but keeping it in line with other increases....

“It’s just [that] the minimum wage has become this odd loophole where it’s the only thing not connected to other rising costs. So while social services and the floor to qualify for those has steadily gone up - minimum wage has remained the same. Which often times means we will be subsidizing our competition’s workforce.” ...

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