Posted on 01/27/2018 8:57:55 AM PST by SandRat
PHOENIX — A state lawmaker wants to give Arizona voters a chance to decide if the current $10.50 an hour minimum wage is as high as it should go.
Sen. Sylvia Allen, R-Snowflake, said her proposal would not repeal what voters approved last year, at least not entirely. The wage gains that already have taken place — from $8.05 an hour in 2016 to $10.50 now — would remain intact.
But she wants to put a question on the November ballot to block the future increases that are supposed to take place between now and 2020 when, unless repealed, the minimum wage would hit $12 an hour.
Her proposal, SCR 1016, also would override existing local laws like in Flagstaff which provide for a higher minimum wage than the state requires and preclude other communities from enacting their own laws.
And it would repeal entirely another provision of the 2016 law which requires employers to provide at least three days of paid sick leave per year for all employees.
The move drew derision from Tomas Robles whose Living United for Change in Arizona organization spearheaded both the petition drive that put the wage hike on the ballot and the campaign to convince a majority of the people who went to the polls to vote for it.
"It's incredible how far they're willing to go to put the needs of the Chamber of Commerce and special interests before the will of the voters,'' he said, referring to the role the state chamber took in its unsuccessful bid to kill the measure. Robles called the whole effort "disgusting.''
Allen, for her part, said she think voters might have second thoughts once they understand the effects the wage hike and required time off is having on small businesses, firms that lack the flexibility and the profit margin to deal with the mandates.
But Robles brushed aside concerns.
He pointed out that foes of the 2016 initiative predicted it would harm the economy and result in layoffs, particularly in low-wage industries like bars and restaurants.
Yet the record shows that the state's jobless rate is at the lowest point in about a decade. And the most recent figures from the state Office of Economic Opportunity shows the number of people working at food service and drinking places has actually increased by 12,700 in the past year, a 5.5 percent increase.
And there have been secondary effects, he said, as the close to one million workers who were affected by the 2016 initiative had more in their paychecks, allowing them to spend more and boost the overall economy.
Allen, however, says her personal experience is that the higher wages have hurt those at the bottom of the pay scale. That includes a kindergarten aide who Allen said told her that her hours had been cut.
"It's horrible if you're the person it's happening to,'' she said.
She does not dispute the improved state economy. But Allen said it is not due to higher wages.
"The market's starting to improve because of the great things President Trump has been doing,'' she said.
Allen acknowledged that her opposition goes beyond the practical effects on employers. She said it's "just wrong'' for government to get involved in the free market.
"To mandate these wages was, to me, an immoral thing,'' Allen said.
Allen also said her proposal is not radical, pointing out that she's not asking voters to rescind the entire 2016 vote and put the minimum wage back to $8.05 an hour.
"Holding the minimum wage at $10.50 is a great minimum wage,'' she said. And freezing it there unless and until voters seek a change provides "stability'' to business owners.
Robles said the margin of victory — 58.3 percent of those who turned out — proves this issue is popular across a broad segment of the population. By contrast, Allen won her most recent general election by less than 51 percent.
And he predicted that if lawmakers insist on putting this on the ballot that voters will simply reaffirm that they want the state's minimum wage to reach $12 by 2020 as well as ensure that workers do get a guarantee of some paid days off.
Robles also chided Allen and other lawmakers for spending time trying to undo something that voters approved less than two years ago.
"Instead of focusing on our education system which is dead last, instead of focusing on infrastructure, or instead of focusing on jobs, they're instead looking to reduce wages of workers,'' he said.
$25/hour to work at Burger King.
No one can support a family on anything less.
Minimum wage is always the minimum wage, it’s not designed to support families. It’s an entry level starting point. I don’t care if you make it $100 per hour, still will be minimum and all costs of goods and service will rise proportionately.
Mark an "X" on a paper ballot, stick it in a box, dip your finger in an indelible ink pot.....Vote Cast!
I was kidding.
Minimum wage = if you can’t earn enough, you’re not allowed to earn anything at all.
I know, just want to build on your point, it’s still a minimum wage no matter how high government mandates.
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