Philadelphia's Mayor Nutter raises minimum wage for city contractors

Mayor Michael Nutter signed an executive order increasing the minimum wage for city contractors to $12 per hour starting Jan. 1, 2015. Contractors must also pay at least the same rate to subcontractors.

It comes on the heels of President Barack Obama urging state and local officials to increase the minimum wage for workers — and effort he surely hopes will translate into the private sector. During his State of the Union address, Obama urged Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, but said that state and local officials "don't have to wait for Congress to act."

Nutter said that “no person who works on a city contract should live in poverty. We must create ladders of opportunity, we must give America a raise."

He went on to say that he wholeheartedly supports "the President’s push for an increase to the federal minimum wage and today, I am answering his call to do what I can to support hardworking Philadelphians. While I still hope that there will be movement at the federal level on the minimum wage, I couldn’t wait. I had to take action, as I have done many times before, and protect the interests of our most vulnerable citizens.”

A White House blog shows changes in the minimum wage throughout the country:

• New York– In April 2013, Gov. Cuomo approved the state budget raising New York’s minimum wage to $9 in 2016.
• Rhode Island– Gov. Chafee signed legislation in July lifting the state minimum wage to $8 by 2014.
• California– A few months later, California became the state with the highest minimum wage law in the country when it raised the state’s minimum wage to $10 by 2016.
• New Jersey– Voters approved a ballot measure in November boosting New Jersey’s minimum wage to $8.25 with annual increases for inflation.
• District of Columbia– In December, the District of Columbia elevated its minimum wage to $11.50 by 2016 with annual increases for inflation. Neighboring counties in Maryland – Montgomery and Prince George’s counties – approved parallel bills in November raising their minimum wage to $11.50 by 2017.
• Delaware– Gov. Markell signed a bill in January raising Delaware’s minimum wage to $8.25 by 2015.
• Connecticut– In March, Connecticut became the first state to raise its minimum wage to $10.10 by 2017. This followed a minimum wage increase last year to $9 in 2015.
• West Virginia– Gov. Tomblin signed a bill in early April increasing the minimum wage in West Virginia to $8.75 by 2016.
• Maryland– On April 7, Maryland’s legislature approved a bill lifting the minimum wage to $10.10 in 2018. Gov. O’Malley signed the bill into law yesterday.
• Minnesota– Gov. Dayton signed a bill increasing the minimum wage to $9.50 by 2016 with future increases tied to inflation in Minnesota on April 12.
• Hawaii– Last week, the Hawaii legislature voted to raise the state’s minimum wage to $10.10 by 2018.

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal