On St. Louis Minimum Wage Increase Taking Effect After Two Year Delay

In response to reports that the St. Louis 2015 minimum wage ordinance will go immediately into effect, National Employment Law Project General Counsel Paul Sonn said:

“Today 35,000 St. Louis workers received a long overdue raise – and St. Louis joined the roughly 40 other US cities and counties that have adopted local minimum wages.  Research in Chicago and other cities shows that these policies are improving workers’ lives without costing jobs. The extra $1,800 a year the average St. Louis worker will earn will help tens of thousands of struggling families – and help the economy as workers spend their paychecks at local businesses. But the Missouri legislature is not just refusing to raise the state’s paltry $7.70 minimum wage – it is considering overriding the will of local voters and elected leaders by stripping cities of the power to address wages, even though Missouri voters strongly support a higher minimum wage.”