BFMW In the News

By Dani Romero
Yahoo Finance, August 6, 2022

It's been 13 years since Congress raised the federal minimum wage, the longest period without an increase since 1938. ...

The Biden administration has advocated for a $15 federal minimum wage, which would lift the pay for 32 million Americans. Earlier this year, President Biden signed an executive order requiring a raise for federal contractors to $15. ...

Some small businesses have backed a minimum wage hike too ...

"Paying a living wage is the right sort of business decision to make," said John Schall, a taqueria owner in Boston, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. "It's not just the right moral and ethical decision. It's the right business decision as well." ...

By Juliana Kaplan, Joseph Zeballos-Roig and Madison Hoff 
Business Insider, July 24, 2022

There comes a time when someone — or something — undergoes a big transition: Becoming a teenager.

For humans, it's often a time of celebration and change. But for policy, it means things haven't changed in a long time. And it's a milestone the $7.25 federal minimum wage just reached. ...

Many states and cities have taken matters into their own hands ... But 20 others still have their minimum wage at the federal rate.

One of those states is New Hampshire. "It's not feasible for people to live on that wage," Rebecca Hamilton, co-owner of W.S. Badger Company in New Hampshire, said. She pays a minimum wage of $15 an hour, and sees even that as "insufficient." 

By Nicole Goodkind, CNN Business
CNN, July 24, 2022

...  July 24 marks 13 years since the last time the US federal minimum wage was raised, to $7.25 an hour. It's also the longest period without a raise since the federal minimum wage was enacted in 1938.

Even as historically high inflation rates have eroded the strength of US paychecks and headlines focus on the tight labor market, that $7.25 rate, which amounts to $15,080 a year for full-time work, remains firmly intact.

"Every day without a raise is another day the minimum wage falls further behind the cost of living," said Holly Sklar, CEO of Business for a Fair Minimum Wage. ...

By Justin Udo
KYW Newsradio, Philadelphia, July 24, 2022

Sunday marks the 13th year since the last federal minimum wage increase, to $7.25 an hour. Since then multiple states, including New Jersey, have raised minimum wage rates to $13 dollars an hour or higher. However, twenty states, including Pennsylvania, have minimum hourly wages that are no higher than the current federal wage. ...

Some business owners in our region told KYW Newsradio they would like to see that rate go up, echoing calls nationwide for raising it to $15 an hour. ...

Scott Nash, founder and CEO of MOM's Organic Market, said $15 an hour is the minimum wage for his employees, and that's something he wants all companies to do.

By Cassie Miller
Pennsylvania Capital Star, July 23, 2022. Also WFMZ-TV Pennsylvania, St. Joseph News Press (MO), Eastern Progress (KY), Longview News Journal (TX), KPVI (NBC) Idaho, other outlets

This Sunday marks 13 years since the federal minimum wage was last raised, the longest period in history without an increase.

The federal minimum wage was at its peak purchasing power in 1968, when the minimum wage was worth $13.86 in 2022 dollars, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Inflation Calculator.

Daris Schneider-Bray (Producer)
11 Alive (NBC), WXIA-TV, Atlanta, July 22, 2022

... Many business owners saying raising the minimum wage has helped with retention and employee happiness. ...

Interview with Johnny Martinez, co-owner Joystick Gamebar, Georgia Beer Garden, and By Weight and Measure bar in Atlanta.

WATCH

By Will Bauer
Nebraska Public Media (PBS, NPR), July 22, 2022

Thirteen years after the federal government last raised the federal minimum wage, a ballot initiative in Nebraska aims to raise Nebraska’s minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2026.

Petition organizers submitted nearly double the required number of signatures earlier this month to the Nebraska Secretary of State’s Office. The petition proposes gradually raising the minimum wage each year.

“I think Nebraska's graduated scale is fairly conservative and will be easy to hit,” said Mike Draper, who owns Raygun, a clothing and design store in Omaha. “And it's adequate for businesses to plan for.”

Op-Ed By Holly Sklar, CEO, Business for a Fair Minimum Wage

The federal minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 per hour for 13 years. ... Every day without a raise is another day the minimum wage falls further behind the cost of living. ...

By Christopher Rugaber
Associated Press (AP), July 8, 2022

WASHINGTON (AP) — A strong hiring report for June has assuaged fears that the U.S. economy might be on the cusp of a recession — and highlighted the resilience of the nation’s job market. ...

John Schall, the owner of a Boston-based Tex-Mex restaurant chain called El Jefe’s Taqueria, is enjoying strong sales growth and says he’s optimistic about his business. He plans to open his eighth restaurant next week in Pittsburgh. Schall has hired five managers there and will add up to 30 hourly workers.

Having opened six stores in the chaotic two years since the pandemic struck, he is relatively unfazed by inflation and supply chain problems.

By Lorie Konish
CNBC, July 7, 2022

Workers earning minimum wage are getting an income boost in some parts of the U.S., thanks to new higher minimum pay rates that went into effect in July.

Connecticut, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, D.C., all had new higher minimum wages as of July 1. Those increases come as the federal minimum wage stands at $7.25 per hour, unchanged since 2009.

President Joe Biden has advocated for raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour for all workers. In January, an executive order he signed that raised the minimum wage to $15 per hour for federal workers and contractors went into effect. ...

How higher wages may help businesses

KETV, ABC 7 (Omaha), July 7, 2022

A petition submitted Thursday morning would put the issue of the minimum wage on the ballot in November. ... The proposed measure would gradually increase the state's minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2026.

One Lincoln business owner said this will help everyone.

"Fair wages make a business stronger, they also make our economy and our community stronger. A person working full-time for Nebraska's current $9 minimum wage earns just $18,700 a year. You cannot get by on that," Alma Ceretta said.

Read more and SEE VIDEO

The group wants to raise Nebraska’s minimum wage to $15/hour by 2026.

By 10/11 Now
KOLN-TV (10/11 - CBS), July 7, 2022. Also WOWT-TV NBC 6 (Omaha), KNOP-TV NBC 2 (North Platte), KSNB NBC 4 (Hastings)

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - Raise the Wage Nebraska (RTWN) submitted petitions containing more than 150,000 signatures to the Nebraska Secretary of State on Thursday. ...

“Raising the minimum wage is a win/win for businesses and workers,” said Dave Titterington, owner of Wild Bird Habitat Stores in Lincoln and Omaha. “When you pay employees a living wage, they’re happier, they’re more dedicated, and they’re more productive. And raising the minimum wage will enable workers to spend more at local businesses all across Nebraska.” ...

By Don Walton and Chris Dunker
Lincoln Journal Star, July 7, 2022 

... Raise the Wage Nebraska had its own news conference earlier Thursday where it announced it had gathered more than 160,000 signatures on a petition to gradually raise Nebraska’s minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2026. That's nearly double the required number of signatures it needed. It also said it had gathered names from voters in all 93 counties across the state. ...

The campaign also found backing from several business owners, who said ensuring workers could earn a livable wage produced better employees, which was better for their companies.

By Paul Hammel
Nebraska Examiner, July 7, 2022. Also in the North Platte Post, Hastings Tribune, Norfolk Daily News, Doniphan Herald.

LINCOLN — Leaders for an initiative to raise Nebraska’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2026 said Thursday they had submitted 160,000 signatures to qualify the issue for the November ballot.

About 87,500 signatures of registered voters are needed to put the issue before voters, so 160,000 should be more than enough to qualify. About 10% to 15% of signatures are typically thrown out on petition drives, for various reasons, such as the signers not being registered to vote, election officials have said. ...

By Jessica Salinas
Fox 42, Omaha, July 7, 2022

Omaha, Neb. — Today, Raise the Wage Nebraska is one step closer to being on the November ballot. They turned in more than double the signatures they needed. This initiative is looking to raise the minimum wage to 15 dollars an hour by 2026.

WATCH VIDEO for interview with Raygun LLC owner Mike Draper.