The Syracuse Common Council introduced a resolution last week supporting Mayor Stephanie Miner’s push to raise the minimum wage for city employees to $15 per hour.

Miner’s decision to raise the minimum wage for city employees went into effect on Oct. 21, and the resolution expressing support by the Council was released just five days later. The new city minimum wage applies to full-time city employees working for at least 10 weeks a year. This legislation will affect more than 60 employees, many of whom are parking checkers, information aides and general laborers, and will cost the Syracuse government about an extra 200,000 a year, according to Syracuse.com.

“No hard working City employee should struggle to make ends meet. For their hard work and public service, they deserve a living wage,” Miner said in a press release. “I am pleased to have the support of our Councilors who seek to stand with the working men and women who make our City run.”

Fourth District Common Councilor Khalid Bey spearheaded the resolution. He argued that raising Syracuse’s minimum wage is “long overdue” and would set “a new standard in the effort to help working families become more sustainable,” according to a press release.

The resolution states that a Living Wage Ordinance has not been passed in Syracuse since 2005, when the minimum wage was raised to $8.75. Since that ordinance was adopted 10 years ago, the cost of living has risen significantly in Syracuse, leading to a discrepancy between certain wage rates in the city.

In the resolution, the Common Council vowed to work with the Miner’s administration to resolve any issues with contracts that would arise from the implementation of this new law.

Miner had previously expressed support for a New York state decision in July to raise the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $15 per hour, saying that it may help decrease Syracuse’s high rates of poverty, according to a press release earlier this year.

Many of the other Common Councilors voiced their agreement with this resolution.

“People who work full-time shouldn’t be poor and that’s what the current minimum wage guarantees — poverty,” Common Councilor-at-Large Pamela J. Hunter said in the press release. “Ensuring a livable wage for all will make our communities and our economy stronger and lead to business growth and more jobs.”

Common Councilor-at-Large Helen Hudson also said in the press release that anyone working 40 hours per week should be able to meet the basic needs of their family.

The Common Council’s support reflects the public’s opinion of the new law. Last month, Siena College published a poll that found that 59 percent of voters support the raising of the minimum wage, compared to 38 percent that opposed the raise, according to the Siena Research Institute.

Not everyone supports this legislation, however. John Sharon, a Republican running in Onondaga County for a seat in the New York State Assembly, expressed his concern over increasing minimum wage in an interview with Syracuse.com.

“One consequence that we would see would involve a loss of jobs amongst service professionals due to cost cutting and automation,” Sharon said to Syracuse.com. “It would limit the opportunities for part-time work, which with many families is vital to their financial survival.”

Published on November 3, 2015 at 11:19 pm

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