Proposed Wage Hike Sparks Controversy

Whether a higher minimum wage will fight poverty is a point of contention as we head toward a vote on Proposition B. Five dollars and 15 cents isn’t good enough for the sponsor of the proposal. State Representative Paul LeVota, co-sponsor of Proposition B, wants to hike the minimum wage to 6.50 an hour. But, that’s not all. Proposition B also ties the minimum wage to the consumer price index, meaning the minimum wage would adjust annually according to increases in the cost of living. All this, LeVota says, to keep full-time minimum wage earners from living in poverty. Gary Marble, with opposing Save Our State’s Jobs Coalition, says that won’t happen with a minimum wage tied to the CPI. He says the added wage costs will only discourage employers to from giving raises and freeze the wages of middle wage earners.