Paradise Post
Saturday, June 8, 1996
Paradise, California

"THE INITIATIVE to raise the minimum wage in California... strikes a better deal for low-wage workers than do proposals floating around in Congress to raise the federal minimum wage.

"The initiative would give low-wage workers more ability to provide for themselves and their families, and in a pleasant side effect reduce welfare payments to some 41,000 families, according to the state Department of Social Services.

"[A] federal proposal would raise the minimum wage to $5.15 an hour by July 1, 1997. But it would also allow employers to set a lower minimum - $2.13 an hour --for workers who earn tips and a training wage of $4.25 for people under 20 for the first three months of their employment."

"The California initiative contains no such provisions, meaning workers who earn tips and young workers can enjoy the same benefits of a higher wage as anyone else.

"Arguments by business groups that a hike in the minimum wage would put people out of work ring a bit hollow. Oregon and Washington both have minimum wages higher than the federal level, and both states have lower unemployment than California.

"And a study by Princeton University shows that after the last rise in this minimum wage, in 1988, there was no loss in employment in California.

"Business groups argue that raising the minimum wage would only inflate the prices of goods and services. But someone who earns minimum wage now can hardly afford anything but the most basic of needs. Inflation has not spiraled with previous increases, and it won't this time either.

"Someone working full-time at $5.75 an hour would earn $11,960 a year. That is still not much to support a family, but it's a great deal better than the current minimum wage, which pays less than welfare. We urge support of this initiative."

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