Following a very lengthy public hearing the City Council opted not to put the petition to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour on the August 4th ballot. Council members were confronted with significant business opposition and sharply divided economic analyses about the impacts of such a wage increase.
Mayor James has pledged to work for some type of wage increase and has introduced Committee Substitute for Ordinance 150127 that would increase the minimum wage to $9.00 per hour on August 24, 2015, followed by incremental increases each year taking it to $13 per hour on January 1, 2020. He as committed to having the current council vote on something by mid-July before the newly elected council takes office on August 1st.
The mayor is organizing a Minimum Wage Stakeholders Group to further discuss the issue and develop a solution to the minimum wage increase that will begin meeting next week.