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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo Announces $15 Per Hour Minimum Wage for SUNY Employees


This past Monday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo raised the minimum wage to $15 per hour for nearly 30,000 employees in the New York state university system ("SUNY").  Governor Cuomo announced at a rally in Manhattan that he will issue an executive order to increase the minimum wage for these SUNY employees.  This increase will likely be phased in until 2018, although some SUNY employees might see a pay increase sooner.  

Not to let an opportunity pass, Governor Cuomo also announced at the rally his intention to take the fight to the state legislature, in his continued fight for a $15 per hour minimum wage for all employees in New York.  Readers might remember Governor Cuomo's success in getting a $15 per hour minimum wage for New York City fast food workers last month.  ($15 per hour minimum wage a reality for New York City fast food workers).  Governor Cuomo had tough words on Monday for those who might oppose the measure:  "...we're going to make sure the voters in your district know who voted for them and who voted against them."  Republican State Senator John DeFrancisco, who chairs the Senate's finance committee, was non-committal on supporting a measure from the Governor.  Senator DeFrancisco noted:  "We'll be discussing it no doubt in session.  Whether there will be an across the board minimum wage increase, I don't know.  It's impossible to predict at this point."

Time will tell if a $15 per hour minimum wage rate for all New York employees will pass.  It is somewhat "easier" for the Governor to dictate what state employees will be paid.  They are governmental workers after all and an executive order can take care of an increase in pay.  However, when it comes to an across the board minimum wage increase that includes private employers, that is where things can get more difficult and drag out. 

Note, the current minimum wage rate in New York went up to $9 per hour on December 31, 2015, an increase from the prior hourly rate of $8.75.

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