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Thursday, March 21, 2019

Reaction from local business owners, employees on minimum wage being raised to $15

BALTIMORE —A bill that will raise the state minimum wage to $15 an hour is now on the governor's desk. But now the question is, will he sign it into law?

The bill gradually increases the minimum wage from $10.10 an hour, as it stands now, to $15 an hour by the year 2025.

Kevin Lockett loves training dozens of students a day at his jujitsu academy in north Baltimore, but he needs a certain amount of help to be able to do so.

He says a minimum wage increase to $15 an hour will make that a struggle.

"We're going to have to run things with less staff, less people watching the kids," said Lockett. "We just can't afford to have as many people as we would want to at that rate."


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4 comments:

Anonymous said...

He has already said he doesn't support it. Even if he vetos it, there are enough supporters to pass it through. There will be a gradual increase to make it to $15 by 2026. We can only hope that the increase in pay is quickly put back into the economy.

Anonymous said...

He needs to veto it - even if he know that it will be overridden!
He touted recovery from the O'Moron era and "open for business"...this will close a few businesses!

Anonymous said...

Pay the workers a livable wage for their productivity. If they have to live on food stamps while working for you full time then your business is not a boon to the economy. Have to downsize? Okay, then do so. The competition will fill the gaps.

Anonymous said...

These people are idiots. Raising the minimum wage to $15 doesn't make a "livable wage" as 12:56 says. All it does is cause the prices for other goods and services to increase. The burger at your favorite fast food store is not $1.00 more. The rent is now $50-75 more a month. Gas is now .10 more expensive. The costs are just passed along to everyone else. The guy that can't afford to live now still can't afford to live at $15 an hour (new minimum wage) because the rising tide of cash used to pay him has now lifted all the prices around him. No company is going to take less profits to pay their workers $5 more an hour. I'm sorry, call it greed, call it capitalism, call it whatever you want, the business isn't going to eat that increase. This is just a smoke screen so that some elected officials say they heard the lower class and helped them out. It's not a life preserver like they're selling it as.