New Studies Show a $15 Min. Wage Leaves Cities on a Bad Note

In an op-ed published last week, Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) Director of State Affairs & Advocacy Brian Rose addressed the real world impact aggressive wage hikes like those implemented in Seattle and San Francisco have on employees and employers. Rose references recent studies published by the University of Washington and the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) and Young Workers United, which find that the minimum wage increase to $15 an hour has led to lower wage employees earning less and has made scheduling hours more difficult.  

According to the op-ed, 

“Their findings show that such an aggressive wage hike may have come at a significant cost to those it purported to help. The University found that the minimum wage increase led to lower wage employees earning $125 less per month and resulted in declines in employment for as employers were forced to cut hours to make ends meet.” 

“For retailers, bills like these continue to be a solution in search of a problem. This is something the service industry has long warned localities and states about when considering these types of regulations.” 

“Additionally, retailers have long implemented many of these policies or transitioned into them on their own. As the nation’s largest employers, retailers study and deploy comprehensive programs that are designed to fit the needs of their employees, all while ensuring that customers receive the highest level of service and goods they seek.” 

The full article can be found here. 

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RILA is the trade association of the world’s largest and most innovative retail companies. RILA members include more than 200 retailers, product manufacturers, and service suppliers, which together account for more than $1.5 trillion in annual sales, millions of American jobs and more than 100,000 stores, manufacturing facilities and distribution centers domestically and abroad.