New York governor Andrew Cuomo and state legislative leaders have reached an agreement to increase the New York state minimum wage to $9 per hour over the next three years.
“If this stays on track to get to $9, then workers all over the state are going to get a real raise, and that’s a good thing,” Michael Kink, the executive director of the Strong Economy for All Coalition said.
Republican members of the legislature were apprehensive, claiming a rise in minimum wage would be damaging to the New York economy in its delicate state. However, Democrats were able to negotiate the increase in exchange for $700 million in tax cuts for small businesses and families.
“We have a good framework for discussion here and we’re making progress on an agreement,” Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Manhattan Democrat, said today at a news briefing after an hour-long meeting with Cuomo and other legislative leaders. “Everything’s on the table.”
“In an economy that’s stagnant, that’s an enormous amount of significant pressure on small businesses that’s going to threaten their viability,” Mike Durant, the New York State director for the National Federation of Independent Business said. He argued that the fact the increase will be gradual and accompanied by tax cuts will cushion but not completely negate its ramifications.
