After a 14 hour debate, which began on May 8 and ended May 9, House Democrats voted to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour. I voted no along with every other Republican in the room because this bill, although well-intended, will not help employers and their employees, but it will cost the State of Connecticut more jobs.
Small businesses will be forced to raise prices, scale back their staffs’ hours, lay off full-time workers, or even close-up shop because they cannot afford this nearly 50 percent wage increase that will happen over the next four years.
And it’s not just businesses that will experience this shockwave. Hospitals and non-profits will need to reduce services to manage costs – services that may help our seniors, children, and disabled individuals – and our cities and towns may be forced to raise taxes.
We all want to see people earning more, but doing it through legislation and mandates is the wrong approach.
