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Round One: Massachusetts Legislative Committee Set to Consider Statewide $15/Hour Minimum Wage Rate & Paid Leave


Today, the Massachusetts Labor and Workforce Development Committee is expected to hold a hearing on an initiative to boost the statewide minimum wage rate to $15/hour by approximately 2022 and another initiative that would require employers to offer 16 weeks of paid leave for medical reasons or to care for a new baby or family member.

Last year, Raise Up Massachusetts garnered tens of thousands of signatures in support of both initiatives in an effort to get both matters before voters this November.  At this point, it appears the Massachusetts Legislature would have to act on both initiatives by June.  If no action happened, supporters of the initiatives would be required to gather more signatures in order to get the matter before voters in November. 

Minimum Wage Initiative

Some lawmakers have noted that while an increase in the statewide wage rate is likely needed (from its current hourly rate of $11), raising it to $15/hour does little good.  As Representative Hannah Kane (Republican from Shrewsbury Massachusetts) has argued, raising the hourly wage rate to $15/hour does not give workers any additional skills to help them find better work.  Others have pointed out that these increased labor costs would be passed along to local city's and schools which are already working on a shoestring budget.  What effect an increase on the minimum wage would have on these particular employers is one thing to keep in mind...especially since these employers cannot simply raise the cost of a cup of coffee or change prices on their menus (like many employers in the state could do) to offset the increase in labor costs.

However, once recent study has found that in Worcester, approximately 1/3 of all local wage earners (hourly workers) would directly receive a benefit from a statewide wage increase.  With nearby states and cities recently having chosen to raise their hourly minimum wage rates (Rhode Island and New York City come to mind), I would suspect there will be increased pressure on Massachusetts to follow suit.  While $15/hour might not be feasible at this point, I would think it is certainly likely enough support to raise the hourly wage rate above $11.


Paid Leave Initiative

Less has been written about the paid leave proposal so far, with the minimum wage initiative taking up most of the oxygen in the room.  With that being said, do not sleep on this one.  While 16 weeks of paid leave is quite a liberal proposal, Washington state has managed to pass a law that provides for 12 weeks of paid leave (with an option for up to 14 weeks) that begins in 202, New York state has approved 8 weeks of paid leave that begins this year, and Washington D.C. has approved a paid leave measure that will allow up to 8 weeks of paid leave beginning in 2020.  Although 16 weeks of paid leave might not be a reality at this point for workers in Massachusetts, something more in line with what Washington, New York, or Washington D.C. have approved is certainly within the realm of possibility.


For additional information as to the minimum wage initiative:  http://www.telegram.com/news/20180125/central-mass-lawmakers-cautious-on-minimum-wage-raise


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