Dive Brief:
- Missouri’s Supreme Court affirmed the state’s minimum wage increase, which will be $11 per hour in 2018, reports the St. Louis Dispatch. The high court reversed an earlier ruling by a trial judge that struck down the wage hike in October 2015, just before the ordinance was to be enacted.
- Baltimore, however, faces opposition to its minimum wage hike from finance officials, who warned the City Council that the increase would cost the city $115 million, according to the Baltimore Sun. The minimum wage will rise to $15 an hour.
- Bob Cenname, Baltimore’s, deputy budget director, claims the increase will lead to the loss of hundreds of jobs for the city. But a majority of the council members are backing the wage increase, says the Sun.
Dive Insight:
Some studies have disputed the idea that a minimum wage increase would lead to fewer jobs, but its a common argument against increases. Small businesses, for example, might feel the financial pinch from minimum wage increases.
Manufacturing leaders who recently met at the White House told Pres. Donald Trump that they have the jobs, but lack the skilled workers to fill them. Any talk about minimum wage hike’s effect on jobs wasn’t made public, which may mean wages aren't the problem for such businesses.
Wage hikes were approved in states and municipalities across the country in the presidential election. Most of the movement on wage has been at the local level. Federally, no bill has emerged promising changes.