By Paul Smith
WPMT Fox43 Central Pennsylvania, May 5, 2015

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HARRISBURG, Pa. – Low-wage workers and some business owners urged state lawmakers Monday to increase the state’s minimum wage. ...

“Let’s not forget that workers are also customers,” Simon Arias, owner of Simon Arias Insurance Agencies, said. “More money in the pockets of over 1 million workers will translate into more sales at businesses across the state, which includes mine.”

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By Jonathan Maze
Nation's Restaurant News, May 1, 2015

A year ago, Pi Pizzeria raised the lowest wage for workers to $10.10 an hour, giving some 275 employees at eight locations increases in pay — without raising menu prices.

“We looked at what goes into turnover and productivity, and how much it costs to train and hire a line cook,” said Chris Sommers, CEO of St. Louis-based Pi parent Euclid Hospitality Group. “We realized that with lower turnover, it’s easy to pay for this. We have loyalty. And good people are not jumping ship to...

Business NH Magazine, May 1, 2015

Some business owners applauded the planned introduction of new legislation to raise the federal minimum wage, which has been at $7.25 per hour since 2009 – just $15,080 a year for full-time work. Business for a Fair Minimum Wage is launching a new sign-on statement for business owners and executives supporting a gradual increase to $12 by 2020 to benefit business and the economy.
 
Senator Patty Murray (WA) and Representative Robert C. Scott (VA) are introducing legislation to increase the federal minimum wage in five steps to $12...

Andy Szal
Manufacturing.net, May 1, 2015

... Sen. Patty Murray of Washington and Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia on Thursday introduced the Raise the Wage Act, which would bump the wage from the current $7.25 per hour to $12 per hour by 2020. ...

"If Senator Murray wants to know why a $12 minimum wage is bad policy, she should look in her own backyard," wrote Michael Saltsman of the Employment Policies Institute, a D.C.-based nonprofit with ties to the restaurant industry.

A group called Business for a Fair Minimum Wage countered that enacting the...

Commentary By Jared Bernstein
Washington Post, April 30, 2015

I’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is that there’s a new proposal coming out today to raise the federal minimum wage to $12.00 by 2020 ... The bad news is that the opponents of the increase, with little regard for the evidence, will soon be trotting out the same tired arguments about how the policy kills jobs and hurts the people it’s intended to help. ...

But there are many other ways that these wage increases get absorbed, such as through prices...

By Nick Quaife
WAFF, Washington, DC, April 30, 2015, Syndicated to many stations around US

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How does 12 dollars minimum wage sound?

Lawmakers meet in Washington Thursday to introduce a new bill that will get it there by 2020. Business owners who support the increase said it's good for business and the economy.

Senator Patty Murray and Congressman Robert Scott will hold a press conference Thursday at the U-S Capitol. ...

Members of a group called "Business for a Fair Minimum Wage" will also speak and talk about reasons to increase minimum wage...

By Secretary of Labor Tom Perez
US Department of Labor Blog, April 30, 2015

Secretary Perez took part in a Minimum Wage press conference on Capitol Hill where he was joined by Gina Schaefer, Owner, Ace Hardware stores, and Rupa, a licensed beautician who earns the minimum wage.

It’s been almost 8 years since Congress last raised the national minimum wage. This step is overdue. ...

In nearly two years as Labor Secretary, I’ve sat down with so many low-wage workers for whom every day involves struggle and sacrifice. For them, just a few more...

Domanique Crawford, Opinion Editor
The Oak Leaf, Santa Rose Junior College, April 27, 2015

... As a nation still recovering from the great recession, the fiscal need to raise the minimum wage is evident. Congress last raised the Federal minimum wage in 2009. Since then, the living wage- the wage needed to support the standard of living- has increased and the gap in income inequality continues to grow. To bridge this gap and boost our economy, raising the federal minimum wage is key. ...

Owning a small-business means constant vigilance of economic growth. The American...

By Scott Lynch
Direct Capital Blog, April 22, 2015

It’s 2015 and small businesses nationwide are hoping it will usher in growth and prosperity. ... In the graphic below, Direct Capital has illustrated a number of factors that could change the landscape of American small business dramatically. ...

MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES

Negative: Republicans have strongly opposed Obama’s call for a minimum wage increase from $7.25/hr. to $10.10/hr., which would further squeeze the budgets of small business owners who are already struggling to make payroll. However, voters in five (usually conservative) states cast ballots in favor of the...

Business & Employment (BEN) News Network, April 20, 2015

A debate is raging in Pennsylvania to raise the minimum wage. The legislation would put the commonwealth on par with 29 other U.S. states which have already passed such laws. ...

Early this month, State Representative Patty Kim chaired a public hearing in Harrisburg on her proposed bill, which would increase the minimum from the current $7.25 per hour to $9.00 per hour after 60 days and then to $10.10 per hour a year later, according to information on her website. Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has...