2016 Indy Endorsements, part 1

Editorial, Colorado Springs Independent, Oct 12, 2016

... Amendment 70, State Minimum Wage: This would raise the state minimum wage from $8.31 to $9.30 on Jan. 1, with further raises of 90 cents an hour each year until reaching $12 an hour on Jan. 1, 2020. More adjustments beyond that would be allowed, tied to cost of living.

Supporters say women and young adults would be impacted positively, because they are among the most affected by the suppressed current minimum wage. Arguments by opponents warn that small businesses would suffer...

By Kate Rogers
CNBC, October 11, 2016

As the general election draws ever closer, Main Street businesses are grappling with the idea of a higher federal minimum wage. Momentum for an increase is building. ... Separately, four states are considering raises for workers on November 8th: Arizona, Maine, and Colorado have $12 on the ballot, while Washington State is taking up a wage of $13.50 an hour, according to the National Employment Law Project. ...

No matter which side of the debate entrepreneurs fall on, they are certainly thinking about how wage hikes may impact their...

CNBC, Oct 11, 2016

CNBC's Kate Rogers takes a look at the impact of the election on small business - including states like Colorado with minimum wage ballot initiatives.

Denver's Judy Amabile, owner of Polar Bottle/Product Architects Inc, says raising the minimum wage has been good for her business [start 0.51]

WATCH

By Scott Kilbury
FOX21 News, October 11, 2016

VIDEO

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — For the first time in 10 years, people in Colorado will have a chance to vote on the minimum wage. Amendment 70 proposes to raise the current wage over the next four years, but it has many business owners divided. ...

Just two miles and 7 minutes down the road, you’ll find Poor Richard’s Cafe.

“The average employee has been with us three years,” owner Richard Skorman said.  “We have quite a few who have been with us 15 and 20 years.”

Skorman...

By Madeleine Schmidt
Colorado Times Recorder, October 10, 2016

Nearly 200 Colorado business owners and executives signed a statement supporting Amendment 70, which would gradually raise the state’s minimum wage from $8.31 to $12 by 2020.

The Colorado Business for a Fair Minimum Wage announcement says the business leaders support the initiative because “it’s good for business, customers, and our local economy.” They’re confident that when Colorado workers have more money to spend, sales will go up at local businesses.

The announcement featured testimonials from small business owners all over the state explaining why they support Amendment 70.

Dan...

By Will Ikard, Director of the Maine Small Business Coalition
Maine Beacon, Oct 10, 2016

Dozens of leading natural products from around the country are showing their support for fair wages by actively supporting the campaign to raise Maine’s minimum wage, Yes on Question 4.

Earlier this year, Dr Bronner’s, Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, and The Fairness Project launched the national Fair Pay Today Campaign. Fair Pay Today is bringing the message that raising the minimum wage is “Good for Business, Good for Us All!” direct to consumers through special product labels...

By Eliza Carter
The Colorado Independent, October 06, 2016

Critics of a minimum wage increase in Colorado have a familiar refrain: Forcing employers to pay more will push small businesses to failure, especially those in rural communities.

But in a bid to put the popular argument to rest, the Colorado Businesses For A Fair [Minimum] Wage campaign today released a statement signed by over 200 Colorado businesses, including restaurants, clothing stores, energy companies, auto service shops and others, making the case for boosting the minimum wage.

By Bente Kirkeland
91.5 KRCC, Southern Colorado's NPR Station, Oct 6, 2016

Colorado is among a handful of states where voters are being asked if the minimum wage should be increased. ...

Still, there are businesses that back the effort to increase the minimum wage in Colorado.

Kyle Garner is the CEO of Organic India USA. The Boulder-based company sells organic tea and herbal supplements to stores such as Sprouts, Whole Foods and Vitamin Cottage.

"There's a lot of people looking and saying business can be a force for good and wages is one of the first...

By Joshua Lindenstein
BizWest (Boulder Valley, Northern Colorado), October 6, 2016

Nearly 200 business leaders from around the state — including several from the Boulder Valley and Northern Colorado regions — have signed onto a joint statement in support Amendment 70, which would increase Colorado’s minimum wage. ...

The statement in support of Amendment 70 released by business leaders on Thursday read in part: “Raising Colorado’s minimum wage makes good business sense. Increased pay means increased consumer buying power — boosting sales at local businesses as Colorado workers buy products and services they could not afford to...

By Ed Ed Sealover
Denver Business Journal, Oct 6, 2016

Campaign leaders for the proposed minimum-wage hike on Thursday unveiled a list of nearly 200 businesses — mostly smaller — that support their effort, hoping to put a dent in the pervading storyline that Amendment 70 pits the business community against the labor community. ...

“I think it’s important because most of the people will recognize the names of the endorsers as places they frequent or makers of products they purchase,” said Debra Brown, campaign manager for the group Colorado Business for a Fair Minimum Wage. “I...

Op-Ed By Richard Skorman, Owner, Poor Richard's, Little Richard's and Rico's
Opponents of Amendment 70 argue it would hurt small businesses and kill jobs. As small business owners for over 40 years, we know that's simply not true. ...

Op-Ed By Kevin J. Daly, Owner, Mountain Sun Pubs and Breweries
As a Colorado restaurant owner, I know that raising the minimum wage is good for restaurants and other local businesses, good for workers and good for our state's economy ...

By Kieran Nicholson
Denver Post, Sept 29, 2016

Spirited arguments for and against raising Colorado’s minimum wage, as proposed in Amendment 70, were aired Thursday night at a Denver Post partnered forum.

The first “Tap the Vote” forum pitted Debra Brown, a manager for Colorado Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, who backs passage, against Tyler Sandberg, with the opposition group Keep Colorado Working. ...

Brown, on the other hand, said the increase, if passed by voters, would stimulate the state economy.

“We know it is good for business. We know it is good for the...

Op-Ed By Laurie Raymond
Glenwood Springs (CO) Post Independent, Sept 27, 2016

As a small-business owner here in Glenwood, I understand that some of my peers are worried about the minimum wage proposal, especially with all the misinformation out there. But the more I look into it, the more certain I am: The plan to gradually increase the minimum wage to $12 an hour by 2020 is a modest, smart and fair solution that will help both hard-working families and local small businesses in the Roaring Fork Valley.

Some corporate lobbying groups are acting like...

By Patricia Cohen
New York Times, Sept 25, 2016

Not that long ago, Alex Caicedo was stuck working a series of odd jobs and watching his 1984 Chevy Nova cough its last breaths. ... Today, Mr. Caicedo is an assistant manager at a pizzeria in Gaithersburg, Md., with an annual salary of $40,000 and health benefits. And he is getting ready to move his wife and children out of his mother-in-law’s house and into their own place. ...

The Caicedos are among the 3.5 million Americans who were able to raise their chins above the poverty line...