“The increase in New York’s minimum wage is a victory for working people. It’s a significant step towards addressing income inequality in New York, which has the worst disparity of any state. Over a million New Yorkers need this raise to help pay the rent and feed their families, and our economy needs this boost.”

Statement of Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union:

“We thank Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver for showing leadership in originally calling for and continually fighting for an increase in the minimum wage.  Many low-wage workers will benefit from the Assembly’s efforts.  However, while we regret that more wasn’t done, we understand that the Speaker and the Assembly were hamstrung by a political process where they had to contend with other partners whose agendas ignored many of the needs of hardworking low-wage workers.  We are incredibly disappointed in the creation of a dangerous tax credit that subsidizes the minimum wage increase for large retailers like Wal-Mart at a time when there are substantial funding cuts to essential services. The tax credit creates harmful incentives to replace adult workers with younger part time students, and imposes an unprecedented ceiling on wages, since employers are penalized if they pay younger workers more than exactly the minimum wage.”

Statement from Hector Figueroa, President of 32BJ SEIU:

“Albany has finally acted — for the first time in nine years — to raise the wages of the lowest-paid New Yorkers, and that’s a good thing.  We’re glad that a million and a half workers will be getting a raise, and we’re glad we won the fight to make sure tipped workers were included in this bill.  We’re angry that Senate negotiators extracted an undeserved and unneeded subsidy for huge corporations as the price for helping workers, and we’ll work to end that subsidy in the future.”

Statement of Michael Mulgrew, President of the United Federation of Teachers:

“I’m proud to be a New Yorker.  New York is once again showing the rest of the nation how to deal with one of the greatest threats to Democracy – income inequality.”

Statement of Deborah Axt, Co-Executive Director of Make the Road New York: 

“Thousands of Make the Road members are tipped workers who were nearly left behind in the minimum wage deal. In the end, we are extremely grateful that the final package includes a path to win an increase for all workers and thank the Assembly for aggressively working to make that happen.

“Further, we thank the Governor for his commitment to making the wage board process fair and efficient with regards to the implementation of a raise for service workers who rely on gratuity. We look forward to working with the executive branch to ensure that the wage board process is effective and just.”

“We are extremely dismayed at the inclusion of the accompanying tax credit giveaways to Wal-Mart and big business, which will incentivize them to displace adult workers with younger workers earning barely minimum wage with no scheduled salary increase. These perverse incentives will disproportionately impact Latino communities and women and are unacceptable in current form. These tax credit must be repealed immediately.”

Statement of Karen Scharff, Executive Director of Citizen Action of New York:

“The negative impact of an inadequate minimum wage is felt by every single New Yorker and hurts our entire economy, but hits working families the hardest. That’s why we applaud the Assembly for having led the charge on increasing the minimum wage and pushing for automatic increases in the future. It’s unfortunate, though, that large corporations were able to use their political clout to win taxpayer subsidies at a time when programs and services that working families need are continually being cut. Increasing the minimum wage will inject a desperately needed boost of activity into our economy and help to get it back on track.”

Statement of Jonathan Westin, Executive Director of New York Communities for Change

“An increase in the minimum wage was long overdue, and we are glad that workers making minimum wage, thousands of whom are members of New York Communities for Change, will be getting this much-needed boost to their paychecks.”

“At the end of the day, this fight is about the gross levels of economic injustice in our state. While this package will provide critical and long overdue relief for families who have been struggling on $7.25 for too long, we’re are disappointed that this relief could not come without giveaways to big corporations, many of which have no qualms about paying working parents poverty wages. We are further outraged that these giveaways provide an incentive for these same corporations to capitalize on the package’s tax credits by replacing their adult workers with teen-agers — particularly those in the $200-billion-a-year fast food industry, who can more than afford to do right by their workers.”

The agreement includes a commitment that Governor Cuomo will use the Department of Labor wage board process to determine the appropriate raise for thousands of tipped restaurant workers whose base wage – currently $5.00 per hour – will not automatically be raised under the budget deal.

After historic leadership from Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a clear commitment from Governor Andrew Cuomo in his State of the State speech, and strong backing from Assembly and Senate members, including Senate Co-President Jeff Klein and Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the final minimum wage increase legislation was negotiated this weekend, with a strong push from Assembly negotiators.

 “We thank Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver for showing leadership in originally calling for and continually fighting for an increase in the minimum wage.  Many low-wage workers will benefit from the Assembly’s efforts.  However, while we regret that more wasn’t done, we understand that the Speaker and the Assembly were hamstrung by a political process where they had to contend with other partners whose agendas ignored many of the needs of  hardworking low-wage workers.  We are incredibly disappointed in the creation of a dangerous tax credit which subsidizes the minimum wage increase for large retailers like Walmart at a time when there are substantial funding cuts to essential services. The tax credit creates harmful incentives to replace adult workers with younger part time students, and imposes an unprecedented ceiling on wages, since employers are penalized if they pay younger workers more than exactly the minimum wage,” said Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union.

“Albany has finally acted — for the first time in nine years — to raise the wages of the lowest-paid New Yorkers, and that’s a good thing,” said Hector Figueroa, President of 32BJ SEIU.  “We’re glad that a million and a half workers will be getting a raise, and we’re glad we won the fight to make sure tipped workers were included in this bill.  We’re angry that Senate negotiators extracted an undeserved and unneeded subsidy for huge corporations as the price for helping workers, and we’ll work to end that subsidy in the future.”

“The increase in New York’s minimum wage is a victory for working people. It’s a significant step towards addressing income inequality in New York, which has the worst disparity of any state. Over a million and a half New Yorkers need this raise to help pay the rent and feed their families, and our economy needs this boost,” said George Gresham, President of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, the largest healthcare union in New York State and the nation.

“I’m proud to be a New Yorker,” said Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers.  “New York is once again showing the rest of the nation how to deal with one of the greatest threats to Democracy – income inequality.”

Pat Purcell, assistant to the president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1500 said, “While the calendar may read  March, it might as well be December because Walmart just received one hell of a Christmas gift, “ said Patrick Purcell, Assistant to the President of UFCW Local 1500.  Walmart’s irresponsible business practices have been well documented and this tax subsidy will have Walmart executives working around the clock figuring out ways to get rid of long term older workers and exploit younger workers. We are thrilled and grateful to all parties for the minimum wage hike and thankful that a path to correct tipped workers wages has been addressed but the ‘Walmart Needs a Tax Break’ portion of the agreement must be repealed immediately.”

As part of the agreement, Senate negotiators demanded the creation of a wasteful tax credit give-away, which will give low-wage employers like Walmart and McDonalds millions in taxpayer funds, and create dangerous incentives for employers to replace adult workers with teens and to keep teens at the minimum wage and not a dime more.   [For more detail on this unprecedented tax credit, see Fiscal Policy Institute, “The Many Problems with New York’s Proposed Minimum Wage Reimbursement Credit.”]

Tipped Wage:  “This long overdue raise will help 1.5 million hard-working New Yorkers and generate thousands of new jobs across the state as they spend their paychecks at local businesses.  After concerns that tipped workers would be left out, we’re pleased that the final agreement includes a path to a raise for the struggling tipped workforce, which is mostly women and workers of color.  The entire coalition is committed to organizing around the wage board to ensure that New York’s tipped wage is kept at its current 69% or higher,” said Paul Sonn, Legal Co-Director of the National Employment Law Project.

Deborah Axt, Co-Executive Director of Make the Road New York said “Thousands of Make the Road members are tipped workers who were nearly left behind in the minimum wage deal. In the end, we are extremely grateful that the final package includes a path to win an increase for all workers and thank the Assembly for aggressively working to make that happen. ”

“Further, we thank the Governor for his commitment to making the wage board process fair and efficient with regards to the implementation of a raise for service workers who rely on gratuity. We look forward to working with the executive branch to ensure that the wage board process is effective and just,” said Axt.

Currently New York’s tipped wage is 69% — the same standard that the Democrats in Washington, including Senators Schumer and Gillibrand, are pushing for the whole nation under the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013.  Under New York’s wage board system, Governor Cuomo’s Labor Commissioner Peter Rivera is authorized to convene a board to investigate and report on the adequacy of New York’s tipped minimum wage, and then issue an order raising the tipped wage.

“This will ultimately put over a billion dollars more into the paychecks of 1.5 million workers in New York — and there’s a clear path to an increase for tipped workers, a fight we fought and won in the last week,” said Michael Kink, Executive Director of the Strong Economy for All Coalition.  ”New Yorkers will see that our economy will be stronger when working families have more to spend at local businesses — we’ll want to do more for low-wage workers in the future.”

“We are pleased that the low-wage worker communities we serve across the state will receive a much needed raise that they deserve. The minimum wage increase put forth in the Governor’s budget is a necessary step in the right direction and one that will make it easier for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers to meet their basic daily needs.  The addition of a requirement that the Governor address tipped workers’ wages through a DOL Wage Board was a crucial addition to address a major hole in the initial proposal.  We hope to work closely with our Coalition partners to ensure the DOL Wage Board, charged with addressing these gaps, plays its part to achieve a solution that results in an equal wage floor for all workers,” said Milan Bhatt, Co-Executive Director, Worker Justice Center of NY.

“Clergy, faith leaders, and congregations throughout New York State fought long and hard to win the critical raise for New York’s lowest paid earners that our diverse faiths demand. The deal reached in Albany takes steps toward ensuring that all workers are paid fairly for their labor and we applaud both Governor Cuomo and Speaker Silver on their leadership in making this happen. We absolutely oppose compromises including the discriminatory business tax credit that provides preference for teenage hires, but at the end of the day New York’s lowest paid workers are getting a raise and that’s a good thing. Faith communities will continue the fight until all working New Yorkers earn a living wage,” said Sara Niccoli, Executive Director, Labor-Religion Coalition of NYS.

“While we were aiming for immediate raises for tipped workers, we understand that the agreement includes a path to a raise for this group of workers. We will focus on making the Wage Board process responsive to the needs of tipped workers, and are committed to reminding our policymakers of the high poverty rates facing the hundreds of thousands of tipped workers in New York, who are overwhelmingly low wage working women and people of color,”  Daisy Chung, Executive Director, Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York.

“Women are the majority of tipped workers and about 70 percent of restaurant servers, whose poverty rate is triple that of the workforce as a whole.  Keeping a strong tipped minimum wage is critical for women’s pay equity, which is a top priority for women’s groups nationally, and we’ll be following closely what Governor Cuomo’s wage board does on this important issue”, said Julie Vogtman, Senior Counsel the National Women’s Law Center in Washington, D.C.

 Walmart Tax Credit:  “It is very good news that 1.5 million New Yorkers stand to receive a badly-needed raise, but it is just terrible that the state has linked the deal to the creation of new, and perverse, tax subsidies for Walmart, and other mammoth multinational corporations, that will result in the state, as opposed to big business, bearing the cost of many of these raises,” said Andrew Friedman, Executive Director of the Center for Popular Democracy.

”What was initially billed as something that small business needed has turned out to be a blank check for the Walmarts of the world. In its perverseness, it rewards employers who don’t reward their workers by keeping them right at the minimum wage. It’s also an invitation to substitute teenagers for low-wage adults struggling to support their families. This tax credit is the epitome of legislative dysfunction,” said James Parrott, Chief Economist and Deputy Director at the Fiscal Policy Institute.

Deborah Axt of Make the Road New York also said “We are extremely dismayed at the inclusion of the accompanying tax credit giveaways to Walmart and big business, which will incentivize them to displace adult workers with younger workers earning barely minimum wage with no scheduled salary increase. These perverse incentives will disproportionately impact Latino communities and women and are unacceptable in current form. This tax credit must be repealed immediately.”

“This minimum wage deal is a perfect example of what happens when business interests are favored over the needs of hard-working taxpayers,” said Camille Rivera, executive director of UnitedNY. “Providing tax incentives for companies to promote age discrimination is a slap in the face to the men and women who are working and still struggling to make ends meet. This deal’s saving grace is that tipped workers will see their wages increased, but even this move will be done on the backs of taxpayers. New York must do better, and we are committed to keep fighting for fair wages for all of its workers.”

“Raising wages for 1.5 million workers is an important step to reduce inequality and raise the living standards of the poorest New Yorkers. But that the tax credit provisions demanded by the Senate are terrible policy, a bad precedent, and a totally unwarranted subsidy to giant corporations like Wal-Mart and McDonalds whose business model is built on impoverishing its workforce,” said Bill Lipton, Deputy Director of the Working Families Party.

“Walmart, McDonalds and all the other powerful companies who choose to pay workers poverty wages will be laughing all the way to the bank with their new taxpayer-financed handout,” said Melanie Beam, President of Capital District Local First, an independent business alliance. “It’s bad enough these corporations undermine our economy and misuse the public safety net by paying employees too little to make ends meet. Now they are getting a bribe to pay workers more than $7.25 an hour, which is what responsible businesses already do all around the state.”

New York’s minimum wage boost also comes one month after Congress introduced the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013, which would raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 by 2015 and index it to inflation. Nearly 140 House of Representative members and 28 Senators have already signed onto this legislation as co-sponsors.  [See NELP fact sheet for key background and bill information].

Raising New York’s minimum wage also won support from leading business voices across the state, including  New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Crain’s New York Business – which editorialized strongly in support of raising the minimum wage, and pointed out that past predictions of slower growth or jobs moving across state lines in response to raising the minimum wage did not materialize. Hundreds of individual businesses and trade associations such as Costco, ABC Home, and the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce, also supported raising New York’s minimum wage.

The most rigorous economic research over the past 20 years shows that raising the minimum wage boosts worker pay without causing job losses – even in regions where the economy is weak or unemployment is high.  Last month, leading economists surveyed by the University of Chicago agreed by a 3-to-1 margin that the benefits of raising and indexing the minimum wage outweigh the costs.  A new study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research reviews the past two decades of research on the impact of minimum wage increases on employment and concludes that “the weight of the evidence points to little or no effect of minimum wage increases on job growth.”

The loophole-laden deal to raise New York’s minimum wage taints what should have been a signature accomplishment for Governor Cuomo and legislative leaders.

The Buffalo News reported Tuesday that the deal includes tax breaks for businesses that employ teenagers making the minimum wage and that tipped workers—such as waiters and car wash workers—will not be getting the wage hike.

When the minimum wage went up in 2000, but tipped workers were denied the full increase, Ed Donnelly, former legislative director of the state A.F.L.-C.I.O., told the New York Times, “To take the lowest-paid worker, a waitress in a greasy spoon, and convene the best minds in the Capitol to rob her of a quarter, to me is immoral.” The same is true today, as Albany once again, is preventing some of New York’s most vulnerable workers from getting a much-needed raise.

Tipped workers are already some of the lowest-paid workers in our workforce. The poverty rate for tipped workers is three times the poverty rate for the workforce as a whole.

The decision to offer tax breaks to employers who hire teenagers is a wasteful give-away to the fast-food industry, major retailers and other big corporations; will encourage the hiring of teens over adults; and sets a terrible precedent nationally. The tax credit encourages employers to hire young workers and then fire them after a year so they can get more tax credits. Plus, once the worker turns 20, the employer will have every incentive to fire them and find another teenager to hire. This isn’t a recipe for creating good jobs in New York.

A much more effective and less harmful way to help teens is to expand funding for the state’s subsidized Summer Youth Employment Program

Even without the loopholes, the reported increase to $9.00 from $7.25 over three years was already weaker than a wage hike passed by the Assembly—to the tune of at least $1.2 billion less in workers’ pockets over five years. The Albany Times-Union editorialized Wednesday that the phased-in increase negotiated by lawmakers is “clearly inadequate.”

And the loopholes add to that inadequacy.

We need to do better. And we’re going to fight until the ink in the budget is dry to make sure that this minimum wage increase is one that benefits all New Yorkers.

As said in a joint statement signed by Costco, the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce, Eileen Fisher, ABC Home, Buffalo First, BALCONY, the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York, Hudson Valley ReThink Local and nearly 400 business owners and organizations across New York:

“With far less buying power than it had four decades ago, today’s minimum wage means poverty for working families and weakens the consumer demand at the heart of our economy. A higher minimum wage makes good business sense. It puts money in the hands of New Yorkers who will put it right back into local businesses, buying needed goods and services. And nothing drives business job creation more than consumer demand. Increasing minimum wage also reduces the strain on our social safety net caused by inadequate wages.”

The joint statement refutes claims that a minimum wage increase will cost jobs, pointing out, “The most rigorous studies of the impact of actual minimum wage increases show they do not cause job loss – whether during periods of economic growth or during recessions.”

Greater New York Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Mark Jaffe said, “We surveyed our members and the majority indicated support for raising the minimum wage. No wonder – it makes perfect business sense. People with low incomes tend to spend their additional pay buying needed goods and services. Therefore, a minimum wage increase will boost the economy and help businesses grow. Raising the minimum wage to $9 and indexing it to inflation is the right thing to do so that workers can keep pace with New York’s high cost of living.”

Darius Ross, Managing Partner of D Alexander Ross Real Estate Capital Partners, said, “Raising the minimum wage makes good business sense in three ways: productivity, profitability and prosperity. With more adequate wages, businesses experience decreased worker turnover and greater worker morale and productivity. Nothing drives business owners like me to hire additional workers more than increased consumer demand. And raising the minimum wage puts more money in the hands of the very people who most need to spend it. That means more revenues for businesses, and a stronger, more prosperous economy creating lasting new jobs. Our workforce, businesses and communities need a minimum wage raise now.”

Melanie Beam, President of Capital District Local First, an independent business alliance in Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady and Saratoga Counties, said, “It hurts our economy when big chain stores pay workers so little they have to work two jobs or rely on public assistance to scrape by. Full-time workers should be able to afford the basic necessities businesses are eager to sell, and no business owner who pays a living wage should be undercut by competitors who do not. A higher minimum wage would level the playing field for small businesses in New York and keep more dollars circulating in our local economy and our tax base.”

“Many small business owners support a higher minimum wage, recognizing that more income flowing through our economy can also benefit us as our customers have more income,” said Jonathon Welch, Co-Founder of Talking Leaves Books, Buffalo’s oldest independent bookstore. “Relating the minimum wage to the consumer price index is a critical part of legislation raising the minimum wage because it allows me to plan into the future for reasonable increases.”

“Raising the minimum wage will provide concrete benefits from Long Island to upstate, said Jon Cooper, President of Spectronics Corporation in Westbury, a manufacturer with more than 150 employees. “Increasing the purchasing power of low-paid workers will pump millions of dollars into our state’s economy. This will provide a much-needed stimulus to small businesses, many of which continue to struggle during the slow recovery.”

“The American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC) and its member organizations represent more than 165,000 businesses and more than 300,000 entrepreneurs and other business professionals in New York and across the country,” said New York City-based ASBC CEO David Levine. “In independent polling released by ASBC and other business organizations, the top concern of small business owners was the lack of consumer spending. Raising the minimum wage would lift the floor under wages, which in turn lifts consumer demand and strengthens our economy for sustainable job creation.”

The business sign-on statement began after Gov. Cuomo proposed a minimum wage increase to $8.75 in the State of the State address and continued after legislative proposals increased to $9 with indexing following the President’s State of the Union. The statement points out that if the state’s minimum wage had kept up with inflation since 1970, the minimum wage would be $10.70 now, not $7.25.

Visit Business For a Fair Minimum Wage for the current list of signers and the full statement.

“Far too many working people in New York are struggling just to survive,” said Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). “They worry how they will afford to house and feed their families. The working poor go to work each day, and still they can’t provide the basic necessities of life. When wages don’t keep pace with rising costs and prices, survival becomes more and more difficult. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We can do something about it. We call on the State Senate to follow the Assembly’s lead and pass a strong minimum wage bill, with indexing. New York’s working poor can’t afford to wait any longer.”

“Speaker Silver and the Assembly have set the course for a wage increase that will put billions more into workers’ paychecks, boost consumer demand at local businesses and leave a legacy of economic fairness for decades to come,” said Michael Kink, executive director of the Strong Economy for All Coalition. “Senate Co-Presidents Klein and Skelos and Governor Cuomo should get this bill passed and signed ASAP – the public wants it and the economy needs it.”

“We applaud the assembly for taking the lead and moving forward the legislation to raise the minimum wage to $9 per hour with indexing,” said Bruce Both, President of United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1500 (UFCW). “There is no moral reason to delay this bill one day longer and only petty politics at this point could stand in the way of true economic justice for hard working New Yorkers.”

“The Hispanic Federation thanks Speaker Silver and the Assembly for taking action on legislation to raise the minimum wage to $9.00 per hour and index it to the cost of living moving forward,” said Jose Calderon, President of the Hispanic Federation. “The reality is far too many Latino families are working tirelessly, but cannot keep up with rising everyday costs in New York earning the current minimum wage. A recent U.S. Census report found 1-in-4 Latino New Yorkers – or over 800,000 – failing to earn enough to escape poverty. Raising our state’s minimum wage to $9.00 per hour is the least we can do to help low-income families climb out of poverty and drive our rebounding economy.”

The Speaker’s proposal would raise the minimum wage $0.25 higher than Governor Cuomo proposed in his budget earlier this year. The Speaker’s bill would also index the minimum wage to rise automatically with the cost of living each year, protecting the purchasing power of the minimum wage from eroding as the price of basic goods rises.

“A $9.00 minimum wage with cost-of-living indexing is really the least that New York can afford,” said Christine L. Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project. “Since many states with lower costs of living are pushing increases well above $9.00 per hour with indexing, there’s no excuse for New York to hesitate in taking this small step to update its minimum wage. The Senate and Governor Cuomo should act quickly to deliver this raise that 80 percent of New Yorkers want.”

The proposed 24% increase in New York’s minimum wage to $9.00 is much smaller than New York’s last minimum wage in 2004, which was 38%.  New York’s minimum wage would equal $10.98 per hour today if it had kept pace with the rising cost of living since 1970. Nineteen states across the U.S. have raised their minimum wages above New York’s current rate of $7.25 per hour, which translates to just $15,080 per year for a full-time worker.

“New Yorkers simply can’t wait for John Boehner to change his mind and pass a much-needed minimum wage increase,” said Bill Lipton, Working Families Party Deputy Director. “We thank Speaker Silver and the Assembly for passing this move to combat inequality and lift New York’s working families out of poverty.”

“Thank you to the Assembly, and especially to Speaker Silver, and Chairs Heastie and Wright, for making this move to advance a deal on minimum wage,” said Deborah Axt, Co-Executive Director of Make the Road New York. “It appears that the Senate also has the votes for $9.00 plus indexing, so there is no reason not to make this minimum wage increase final right now.”

“The time is now for the legislature and the Governor to stand up for the dignity of working New York families,” said Andrew Friedman, executive director of the Center for Popular Democracy. “Hard work should lead to economic opportunity, not to poverty.”

“Across diverse faiths and denominations, religious communities throughout New York State have gathered to demand a raise for New York’s minimum wage earners,” said Sara Niccoli, Executive Director of the Labor-Religion Coalition of New York State. “We applaud this important step in moving forward a minimum-wage increase to $9.00 per hour with the crucial indexing component. This evening at 8pm the faith, community and labor allies across New York will begin a 40-hour fast to push forward the raise that hard-working New Yorkers so desperately need.”

“We applaud the State Assembly for their bold action in passing legislation now to implement a $9.00 per hour minimum wage with indexing. This is long overdue and complements President Obama’s call for the same in his State of the Union address.  We look forward to working with the rest of the State Legislature and the Governor in making this law a reality as quickly as possible,” said NAACP State President Dr. Hazel N. Dukes.  “This legislation particularly impacts people of color throughout the state, whether Black, Latino, or Asian, who are disproportionately impacted by minimum wage conditions. With a $9.00 minimum wage, working New Yorkers will have a better chance of being lifted out of poverty, the opportunity to afford healthier foods, access more preventative medical and dental care, and overall have a better chance at The American Dream, “ said NAACP Economic Development Chairman Garry Anthony Johnson.

Following the Assembly’s passage of the $9.00 minimum wage increase with indexing, the statewide Raise the Minimum Wage Coalition immediately applied new pressure on Skelos and Senate Republicans to pass the state legislation that has growing bipartisan support. They invoked Mitt Romney’s support for a minimum wage hike with indexing to show that Republicans are on their side.

“Skelos and Senate Republicans need to recognize the increasing number of business owners, working people, and elected officials who are united behind this bipartisan effort to make our economy stronger and fairer,” said Michael Kink of the Strong Economy for All Coalition. “Bogus arguments against this bill have been defeated by mainstream moderates in both parties.” 

The proposed increase to $9.00 plus cost-of-living indexing is quite modest compared to past New York increases, and increases being called for by Congress and leaders in other states.  New York’s last minimum wage increase, approved by the legislature in 2004, was 38%.  A comparable increase today would mean raising New York’s wage to $10.05.

“An increase to $9.00 plus indexing is, frankly, far too low a minimum wage for a high cost state like New York, and much smaller than New York’s last increase,” said Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project. “The notion that the state Senate would stonewall such a modest step is appalling.”

Today U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer and Kristen Gillibrand co-sponsored legislation to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour and index it to rise each year with the cost of living. The legislation, the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013, is also co-sponsored by New York Representatives Bishop, Clark, Higgins, Maloney, McCarthy, Nadler, Slaughter, Tonko, and Valazquez.  Legislatures in other states with high costs of living like New York are calling for far larger increases:  $9.75 in Connecticut, $10.00 in Maryland and Illinois, and $11.00 in Massachusetts.

“At Costco, we know that paying employees good wages makes good sense for business,” said Craig Jelinek, Costco’s President and CEO. “We pay a starting hourly wage of $11.50 in all states where we do business, and we are still able to keep our overhead costs low. An important reason for the success of Costco’s business model is the attraction and retention of great employees. Instead of minimizing wages, we know it’s a lot more profitable in the long term to minimize employee turnover and maximize employee productivity, commitment and loyalty. We support efforts to increase the minimum wage in New York.”

Greater New York Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Mark Jaffe said, “We surveyed our members and the majority indicated support for raising the minimum wage. No wonder – it makes perfect business sense. People with low incomes tend to spend their additional pay buying needed goods and services. Therefore, a minimum wage increase will boost the economy and help businesses grow. Raising the minimum wage to $9 and indexing it to inflation is the right thing to do so that workers can keep pace with New York’s high cost of living.”

Melanie Beam, President of Capital District Local First, an independent business alliance in Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady and Saratoga Counties, said, “It hurts our economy when big chain stores pay workers so little they have to work two jobs or rely on public assistance to scrape by. Full-time workers should be able to afford the basic necessities businesses are eager to sell, and no business owner who pays a living wage should be undercut by competitors who do not. A higher minimum wage would level the playing field for small businesses in New York and keep more dollars circulating in our local economy and our tax base.”

“Wages are a basic cost of business and like energy, transportation and other expenses, costs change over time,” said Amy Chender, Chief Operating Officer of retailer ABC Home. “The minimum wage must increase to reflect the rising cost of living. ABC Home pays well above the current minimum wage and we are ardently committed to supporting a minimum wage raise. No business is an island. When New York does better we do better. A minimum wage increase will improve our state economy, and is long overdue.”

“Many small business owners support a higher minimum wage, recognizing that more income flowing through our economy can also benefit us as our customers have more income,” said Jonathon Welch, Co-Founder of Talking Leaves Books, Buffalo’s oldest independent bookstore. “Relating the minimum wage to the consumer price index is a critical part of legislation raising the minimum wage because it allows me to plan into the future for reasonable increases.”

In the joint statement, the business leaders said, “With far less buying power than it had four decades ago, today’s minimum wage means poverty for working families and weakens the consumer demand at the heart of our economy. A higher minimum wage makes good business sense. It puts money in the hands of New Yorkers who will put it right back into local businesses, buying needed goods and services. And nothing drives business job creation more than consumer demand. Increasing minimum wage also reduces the strain on our social safety net caused by inadequate wages.”

The joint statement refutes claims that a minimum wage increase will cost jobs, pointing out, “The most rigorous studies of the impact of actual minimum wage increases show they do not cause job loss – whether during periods of economic growth or during recessions.”

“Raising the minimum wage will provide concrete benefits from Long Island to upstate, said Jon Cooper, President of Spectronics Corporation in Westbury, a manufacturer with more than 150 employees. “Increasing the purchasing power of low-paid workers will pump millions of dollars into our state’s economy. This will provide a much-needed stimulus to small businesses, many of which continue to struggle during the slow recovery.”

“The American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC) and its member organizations represent more than 165,000 businesses and more than 300,000 entrepreneurs and other business professionals in New York and across the country,” said New York City-based ASBC CEO David Levine. “In independent polling released by ASBC and other business organizations, the top concern of small business owners was the lack of consumer spending. Raising the minimum wage would lift the floor under wages, which in turn lifts consumer demand and strengthens our economy for sustainable job creation.”

Robin Soto, owner of Redmoon Caregivers, a home health care agency in Ithaca, said, “From the inception of our business in 2002, we have remained committed to paying all of our employees a fair wage because it is the right thing to do. Not one of our dozens of employees has ever been paid less than $10.50 an hour. New York’s current $7.25 minimum wage is shameful.”

The business sign-on statement began after Gov. Cuomo proposed a minimum wage increase to $8.75 in the State of the State address and continued after legislative proposals increased to $9 following the President’s State of the Union. It calls for increasing the minimum wage to at least $8.75, and then indexing it to inflation as 10 other states have done, or locking in additional step increases in future years. The statement points out that if the state’s minimum wage had kept up with inflation since 1970, the minimum wage would be $10.70 now, not $7.25.

Visit Business For a Fair Minimum Wage for the current list of signers.

“Speaker Silver and his Assembly colleagues are on the right track to help New York’s lowest-paid workers. Our coalition strongly supports moving New York’s minimum wage to $9 per hour and indexing it for inflation.

We salute the Speaker and Assembly Members Wright and Heastie for their strong legislation. And we encourage Senate Co-President Klein, Senate Minority Leader Stewart-Cousins and other Senate champions of raising the wage to develop new, stronger legislative proposals as well.

If President Obama and Mitt Romney can agree on raising the wage and indexing it, we certainly expect that Speaker Silver, Governor Cuomo and Senate Co-Presidents Klein and Skelos can do the same.

New York’s low-wage workers face a high cost of living, low and stagnant wages, and few clear pathways out of poverty. But finally federal and state elected officials are taking concrete steps to help. New York can and should be a national leader in this effort.”

The New York State Minimum Wage Coalition is a collection of labor, community, policy and religious groups pushing Albany to raise the minimum wage. It includes the National Employment Law Project, ALIGN, Businesses for a Fair Minimum Wage, Central New York Labor Federation (CNY), Center for Popular Democracy, Citizen Action of New York, Coalition for Economic Justice (WNY), Communications Workers of America, Community Voices Heard, Fight for Fair Economy Table (WNY), Fiscal Policy Institute; Gamaliel of New York (Upstate), Hudson Valley Community Coalition, Hunger Action Network, Latino Pastoral Action Center, Laundry Workers Center United, Long Island Jobs with Justice (Long Island), Make the Road New York(NYC), Metro Justice (Greater Rochester), Micah Institute at the New York Theological Seminary (NYC), Moms Rising, New York City Coalition Against Hunger (NYC), New York Communities for Change, New York State Council of Churches, New York State Episcopal Public Policy Network, New York State Interfaith Impact, New York State Labor-Religion Coalition, Occupy Albany (Albany), Occupy Faith (NYC), Retail Action Project (NYC), Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union Local 338 (Long Island), Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York (NYC), Service Employees International Union Local 32BJ, Service Employees International Union Local1199, Service Employees International Union Local 200 (Upstate), Strong Economy for All, United Auto Workers, United Federation of Teachers (NYC), United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1500, United NY (NYC), Uri L’Tzedek (Downstate), Worker Center of Central New York (CNY), Worker Justice Center of New York Working Families Party

After marching from Westminster Presbyterian Church to the Capitol, the group will hold a rally and prayer service on the “Million-Dollar Staircase.” They’ll then deliver petitions with more than 25,000 signatures urging lawmakers to give low-wage workers a raise to the Senate’s chambers.

“More than a year ago, we began a campaign together to raise the minimum wage, because New York is the income inequality capital of the nation and we won’t change that without action,” said Michael Mulgrew, President of the United Federation of Teachers. “Today hundreds are gathering in Albany, tens of thousands have signed online petitions, and more than 80% of New Yorkers in recent polls support the call for the strongest possible wage increase. The state’s lowest-paid workers cannot wait any longer. It’s time for Albany to do what is right and raise New York’s minimum wage.”

At $7.25 per hour, New York’s minimum wage remains decades out of date. With growing numbers of New Yorkers relying on low-wage jobs to survive, too many do not earn enough to afford basic expenses. Last week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed raising New York’s minimum wage to $8.75 per hour, and on Tuesday, low-wage workers and their advocates told members of the Senate it was time they took action on the governor’s initiative.

“Governor Cuomo has cleared the way for raising New York’s minimum wage this year, so the ball is now in the legislature’s court to approve a strong minimum wage increase that makes up for years of neglect and reflects the state’s high cost of living, ” said Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project. ” New York’s minimum wage should be raised to at least $8.75 per hour, as the Governor has proposed, and then it should be indexed to inflation and include additional step increases, to keep it at a meaningful level.”

The Raise the Minimum Wage Coalition supports Gov. Cuomo’s call to increase the minimum wage to $8.75 by July 2013, and is working to encourage the legislature to index the wage for inflation after that and/or include additional step increases above $8.75 to bring it closer to the cost of living.

The march, rally and prayer service came a day after the National Employment Law Project and the Fiscal Policy Institute released a report that showed raising the minimum wage to $8.75 and indexing it to inflation would boost New York’s economy. A hike to $8.75 would raise the paychecks of more than 1.5 million low-paid New Yorkers, generate more than $1 billion in new consumerspending, and support the creation of 7,300 new full-time jobs across the state as businesses expand to meet increased demand, the report showed.

The purchasing power of New York’s minimum wage peaked in 1970 and has lost a third of its value since that time as the cost of basic goods has continued to rise: If New York’s minimum wage had kept pace with inflation since 1970, it would equal $11.15 per hour today. Due to legislative inaction, the state’s minimum wage remained stagnant for two nine-year periods, from 1981-1990 and from 1991-2000, as the cost of living increased over this time. The state’s minimum has increased by only 10 cents in the past six years.

Mario Cilento, President of the New York State AFL-CIO, said, “The days of minimum wage jobs being reserved for high school students earning some extra pocket money are long over. Raising the minimum wage will make a real difference in the lives of workers, many of whom are adults working full time, and many of whom have families to support. Minimum wage workers must spend every dollar earned just to get by, so any additional income they receive will be spent right back in their communities, supporting local employers and growing the tax base. By further indexing the minimum wage, we can provide predictability to both workers and businesses in planning for the future.”

Héctor Figueroa, President of 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, said, “Poll after poll shows that a diverse and growing majority of state residents want the minimum wage increased. New Yorkers from differentpolitical parties, income levels, races and ethnic backgrounds are calling on our state government to take this critically important action, and raise the minimum wage now.

Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, said, “For too long, income inequality has been a drag on our economy. And, New York’s low-wage workforce continues to be left behind. A stronger minimum wage will help restore the consumer spending that powers our economy and that local businesses need in order to thrive. Every dollar a low-wage worker receives will be spent on needed goods and services. That is among the reasons why we are encouraged by Governor Cuomo’s proposal to raise the minimum wage to $8.75. A higher minimum wage will help the state’s lowest-paid workers afford the basic necessities of life, and build better lives for their families.”

Deborah Axt, Co-Executive Director of Make the Road New York, said, “Make the Road New York members today have joined busloads of other low wage workers to tell Albany how critically we need to raise the state’s minimum wage. The growing intensity of their voices and the leadership of Governor Cuomo and Speaker Silver on this issue shows that the time has come to take this common sense step.

Andrew Friedman, Executive Director of the Center for Popular Democracy, said, “Raising the minimum wage, and making sure it is indexed to keep up with inflation, will benefit more than million low wage workers throughout NY State and will jumpstart the state’s economy. By working together on this critical issue, Governor Cuomo and the Legislature can create a more just and more economically vibrant New York.”

Michael Kink, Executive Director of the Strong Economy For All Coalition, said, “This is the year, and now is the time. Governor Cuomo has led the way with his budget proposal, and our champions in the Legislature — including Speaker Silver, Senate Co-President Klein and Senate Minority Leader Stewart-Cousins — will be working to make sure this session we leave a legacy of economic fairness for all New Yorkers. Raising the wage to $8.75, indexing for inflation and including additional step increases to get us towhat workers and families really need — it’s all doable, this year.”

Pastor Que English of the New York City Clergy Roundtable, said, “New York’s low minimum wage is not only bad for the economy, it’s an injustice that leavesfull-time workers stuck in poverty. Albany lawmakers have a moral responsibility to not allow another year to pass without raising the minimum wage and indexing it to rise with the cost of living. This is the least they can do.”

Melanie Beam, President of Capital District Local First, a non-profit independent business alliance in the Capital Region, said, “The inadequate minimum wage in New York perpetuates the cycle of poverty for many hard-working New Yorkers. One of the benefits of buying local that groups like ours cite is that, on average, independent businesses pay higher wages, which recirculate into our local economy and tax base. If all New Yorkers can make a wage they can live on, they will spend this money in their local communities, bolstering their neighborhood businesses, which are the true backbone of the economy.”

Myrna Capaldi, a single mother, social services worker from Kingston, NY, and member of the Worker Justice Center of New York,” said, “It’s nearly impossible to survive on $7.25 an hour. I work hard every day to provide for my daughter, but I still struggle to even afford food at the grocery store. My family deserves much better.”

The 2012 elections were the most expensive in our nation’s history. The cost was more than $6 billion, about the size of South Carolina’s entire state budget.

So who’s coughing up all that dough?

Citizens United amplified the influence of ultrawealthy and corporate interests. Super PACs could circumvent disclosure requirements and donation caps, allowing pay-for-play donations at a scale previously unimaginable.

We know some of the top players: Casino billionaires like Sheldon Adelson, who pledged $100 million to Mitt Romney and would have saved $2 billion under his tax plan. Oil and gas plutocrats like David and Charles Koch, who gave millions to Romney to gut environmental regulations and save up to $8 billion on estate taxes. Media moguls like Fred Eychaner, who boosted Barack Obama with $8.1 million and benefits from looser regulations on the ownership of TV stations and newspapers.

But we don’t know all of them: Thanks to Citizens United, secretive, unlimited donations from ultrawealthy donors and corporations to Super PACs dominate our elections.

Even Richard Posner, the Chicago federal court judge considered the nation’s most influential conservative jurist, has called our political system corrupt because of Citizens United.
“Our political system is pervasively corrupt due to our Supreme Court taking away campaign-contribution restrictions on the basis of the First Amendment,” he said in July.

There’s a way out of this nightmare — and New York can lead the way.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is championing a “fair elections” system with public financing to create a clean option for candidates that limits the influence of big money.

In this system, candidates get public matching funds for small donations, allowing them to rely on regular people, not corporations or the wealthy, to fund their campaigns.

As the biggest state to consider a fair elections system, we’d show the nation the path away from the corporate-controlled politics of Citizens United. Just as Cuomo and the state Legislature led the way on protecting the public from dangerous assault weapons, they can lead the way on protecting us from the dangerous corruption of big money in politics.

New York needs an overhaul in this area. Right now, two-thirds of donations to state candidates come from big corporations or big donors. We spend more than $4 billion a year on corporate tax breaks and special subsidies. We have the worst income inequality in the nation.

We must move mountains to get the Legislature to increase the minimum wage, build affordable housing and invest in job training programs — while corporate lobbyists get new tax breaks with the snap of a finger.

It’s time we return to government of, by and for the people — not government bought and paid for by special interests. If corporate special interests want to invest in our government, let them pay their fair share of taxes, rather than paying for politicians who will write them special tax breaks.

We need to replace corporate-funded elections with fair elections, specifically campaigns that rely on small donations and limited matching funds.

Fair elections reforms can change the game: with a 6-to-1 matching rate of public funds, a $25 contribution from a local supporter expands into $175 in campaign funds.

States and localities that have tried fair elections, including Connecticut and New York City, have found that lawmakers raise more from constituents and small business owners, and less from special interests and corporations. And lawmakers have found they have more time and more resources to work for the good of their communities, rather than for the good of a few big corporations.

Citizens United made big corporate donors and the very rich more powerful, while fair elections reforms make small donors and regular people more powerful.

If we’re going to move our country toward economic fairness and real democracy, we need the Legislature to join Cuomo to pass fair elections, strict disclosure rules and tough enforcement. It would be another big leap toward making New York a leader on the most difficult issues of our times.

Michael Kink is executive director of the Strong Economy For All Coalition. His email address is michael.kink@strongforall.org. Dave Palmer is executive director of the Center for Working Families.

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/United-we-donate-4206954.php#ixzz2IYqp0YrO