On Monday, the lowest legal wage at most companies that employ more than 10 workers rose by $2, to $15 an hour. Among those whose pay will increase are all fast-food workers as well as more than 25,000 workers at the city’s two airports.
The increase is the latest step in a gradual rise in the minimum wage that labor unions campaigned for and that Gov. Andrew Cuomo eventually endorsed. New York City joins several other cities on the West Coast where minimum wages have already hit $15, including San Francisco and Seattle.
California’s minimum, which rises to $12 an hour for larger employers on Jan. 1, is scheduled to rise to $15 over the next few years.
“The ‘Fight for 15’ has gone from a rallying cry to facts on the ground in just a few short years,” said Paul Sonn, state policy program director with the National Employment Law Project, which advocates for low-wage workers. “This demand was from the fast-food workers who explained that was the minimum they needed for a decent life.”
Some states still operate under the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour. Connecticut’s minimum wage is $10.10, while in New Jersey it is $8.85.
For hourly workers, the increase can make a big difference. Rosa Rivera earned just $5.15 an hour and relied on government assistance to pay her rent when she started working at a McDonald’s in Manhattan 18 years ago. Now 53 and a veteran of several rallies for better wages, Rivera’s eyes teared up as she spoke about attaining one of the main goals the workers had set.
“When I get my first check with $15, I’m going to be so happy,” said Rivera, an immigrant from El Salvador with three children. She said she was proud to pay her rent and help support her grandchildren without federal benefits.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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