FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 14, 2013

Assembly Amends Minimum Wage Legislation to Nine Dollars an Hour to Conform to President's Proposal

Bill Indexes Minimum Wage to Ensure Earnings Rise with Cost of Living


Praising President Obama's call to raise the federal minimum wage to nine dollars an hour, Speaker Sheldon Silver joined with Assemblymen Keith L. T. Wright and new Labor Committee Chairman Carl Heastie to announce an amendment to the Assembly legislation (A.38a) to match the President's proposal. The legislation still includes indexing so wages do not erode in the future.

"The Assembly Majority introduced the bill to increase the minimum wage more than a year ago. Since that time, the people of New York have shown overwhelming support to help hard working families forced to live in poverty," said Silver. "This week, the issue claimed the national stage as a critical component of the President's agenda. I am heartened by his rousing endorsement to raise the wage and tie it to the cost of living. However, New York cannot wait while Washington weighs the pros and cons of a federal shift in the minimum wage. We must act now."

"I have never been more proud of my House. The amendment to this bill is consistent with what our President and his bold leadership projected. It is my sincerest hope that the Senate will prove themselves to be more concerned about the people in the State of the New York than their federal counterparts have been," said Wright, sponsor of the bill with Silver.

The legislation calls for the minimum wage to increase to nine dollars an hour in January of 2014. Beginning in 2015, the minimum wage will be indexed, requiring an increase each year to adjust for inflation according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The measure will also set wages for food service workers who receive tips at $6.21.

"Amending the Assembly's minimum wage proposal to match President Obama's call for a nine dollar national minimum wage and indexing it to inflation will continue to help New York lead working families into the future," said Heastie.

The minimum wage in New York has increased only ten cents in the last six years. It was raised with the federal minimum wage from $7.15 to $7.25 an hour in 2009.

The District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and 16 other states have higher minimum wage rates than New York State.

Ten other states have passed legislation indexing the minimum wage.