August 28, 2017
New Law in Missouri Lowers St. Louis Minimum Wage
Today, a new law in Missouri will take effect that prohibits local government from enacting minimum wage different than the state minimum.
Earlier this year, the minimum wage in St. Louis was increased to $10 an hour. The Missouri State Supreme Court sided with St. Louis after a two-year battle.
Over 30,000 in St. Louis saw a big pay increase, from $7.70 an hour to $10 an hour overnight. By 2018, the plan was to increase the St. Louis minimum wage to $11.
The law faced opposition from many people, such as State Senator Dan Hegeman.
“You end up having fewer jobs and you do a disservice to the workers. In my heart of hearts, I really think it hurts people in the long run” said Hegeman.
An online petition was started, in order to keep the minimum wage, even after the new law takes effect. More than 1,000 businesses have signed the petition, but unfortunately large employers like McDonald’s and Taco Bell, are telling their employees their wages will drop back down.
One Taco Bell employee, Gennise Mackey, said, “I was just getting caught up on my bills and was able to start getting things for my child. Now, it’s going to be a big setback. The cost of living is going up, and they expect us to live on $7.70?” Mackey, along with 50 other fast food employees and union leaders staged a protest outside of a McDonald’s earlier this week.
The new law doesn’t just affect St. Louis. Protests have also been happening in Kansas City.
However, in Kansas City, employers have been encouraged to voluntarily comply with the minimum wage set by voters earlier this month, which is $10 an hour.
A group called Raise Up Missouri is collecting signatures to get a ballot initiative before voters in November 2018. The goal is to raise the minimum wage throughout the whole state to $8.60 in 2019, and a continual .85 cent raise each year. Their end goal is to get minimum wage to $12 by 2023.
According to the Economy Policy Institute Date, the District of Columbia and 29 states have minimum wages above the U.S. minimum, including Missouri.