Council to Weigh Wage Hike Delay
By Laura Banish
Journal Staff Writer
Advocates and opponents of
Debate over the city's living wage law, which mandates that
all businesses with 25 or more employees pay a minimum hourly wage of $8.50,
has been gaining momentum in recent weeks, building up to today's City Council
meeting at the Sweeney Convention Center. Tonight, the council will consider a
proposal to delay a scheduled increase in the city's living wage from $8.50 to
$9.50, which is currently set to happen in January. The proposed amendment
would delay the wage increase six months and make each future increase subject
to approval by the council upon review of the impact of the previous increase.
On Tuesday, living wage advocates said the results of a
preliminary study by the
The study says that overall employment has increased year
over year in each quarter since the city-mandated hourly wage of $8.50 took
effect on
The study also shows an improvement in average wages in
Although the study is only preliminary, members of the Santa
Fe Living Wage Network said the information is sufficient to move forward with
the upcoming wage increase.
The Living Wage Network has collected nearly 1,800
signatures in a campaign to oppose the proposed delay of the wage increase.
"I'm an economist, so of course, I'd like to see more
data, but I think it's an excellent study," said Gerry Bradley, research
director with New Mexico Voices for children, an agency that supports higher
minimum wages. "The
Meanwhile, opponents of the law argue that the council
should delay the upcoming wage increase until the study is complete.
The proposal to delay was introduced by Councilor David Pfeffer, the lone councilor to vote against the higher wage
when city officials passed the law in 2003.
Pfeffer said Tuesday he is not
satisfied with the preliminary study. He also said he believes that language
used in the study indicates a bias in favor of the living wage.
"I think that the study as presented now is
inadequate," Pfeffer said.
Simon Brackley, interim director
of the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce, said he found the preliminary report
"quite disturbing."
"A lot of people have lost the opportunity to work and
make money," Brackley said of the law's impact.
He cited findings in the study that indicated that the
increased wage may have had a negative impact on unskilled workers or people
with disabilities, as employers are less likely to hire them at the higher pay
rate. According to the study, businesses also have reduced the number of new
hires for seasonal or part-time work and have reduced staff through attrition.
Brackley said he was also
concerned that in the study nearly 20 percent of businesses reportedly raised
prices of their goods to offset the cost of the living wage.
"That puts us back to square one and completely
undermines the purpose (of the law) to make
While workers who participated in the study said they were
earning better wages, several said they continue to live paycheck to paycheck.
Members of the Living Wage Network said this is precisely
the reason the wage should proceed to $9.50.
"Over the course of my lifetime, I've watched