California Gov. Jerry Brown lifts a signed bill creating highest statewide minimum wage at $15 an hour by 2022 at the Ronald Reagan building in Los Angeles, April 4. (Nick Ut, The Associated Press)
Re: Going too far on minimum wage?, April 4 editorial (reprinted from Bloomberg View); and Wary of raising minimum wage, April 8 letters to the editor.
As a small-business owner, I was disappointed in the editorial and letters to the editor about raising the minimum wage. The reality is wages haven t kept up with the cost of living, and hard-working families can t make ends meet.
Anxiety is understandable but unfounded. Cities and states that have raised the minimum wage have experienced stable employment, thriving businesses and workers who not only make ends meet but also spend that extra money locally, boosting the economy for everyone.
I run a garden maintenance company and start all new employees at $15 an hour. It helps me retain good workers, which makes my clients happy and they hire us year after year and refer us. It s common sense to me.
I also don t believe in sticking taxpayers with the tab to subsidize their health care and groceries because I won t pay a living wage. Rent has skyrocketed in Denver and around the state. How can we possibly keep wages the same? The proposed ballot measure to raise Colorado s minimum wage to $12 an hour by 2020 is very modest, and I personally think it could go farther, but it s a start in making an economy that works for everyone.
Sarah Marcogliese, Lakewood
This letter was published in the April 16 edition.
