Murphy Still Wants To Raise New Jersey Minimum Wage (But When?)

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy says that he’s still committed to raising the state’s minimum wage. But the timeline for when it might happen is another matter altogether.

During a community roundtable on income inequality at St. Stephan's Grace Community church in Newark on Wednesday, Murphy met with several low-wage workers, labor activists and public officials and reaffirmed that he’s still committed to fighting for a higher minimum wage.

Workers and activists at Wednesday’s roundtable talks told Murphy that the state’s current minimum wage of $8.60 is woefully inadequate to pay for simple necessities such as groceries and utility bills.

Murphy has previously said that he plans to raise the minimum wage to $15 within four years. "If you do the math, $15 is hardly heroic," he said during a November press conference, adding that the current minimum wage is "barely above" the poverty line for even a two-income couple.

On Wednesday, Murphy said that he’s rejecting the “us versus them” mindset about a minimum wage hike that exists among some members of the business community, NJ.com reported.

However, while he asked state legislators to “send him a $15 wage bill” to sign during his swearing-in ceremony, Murphy offered no specific details about any such effort during Wednesday’s roundtable.

After the meeting, Murphy said there have only been “initial discussions” with leaders in the New Jersey Assembly and Senate on the minimum-wage issue. He offered no specific timeline for the $15 wage goal, NJ Spotlight reported.

Murphy, a former Goldman Sachs executive, will make a $175,000 a year salary as New Jersey governor, NJ.com reported.

New Jersey officials, as mandated by the state Constitution, annually adjust the minimum wage based on the consumer price index statistics released by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Garden State Democratic leaders and grassroots activists have been trying to get the minimum wage raised in New Jersey for years. Their efforts have faced stiff opposition from former governor Chris Christie, a Republican, who has argued that a $15-an-hour minimum wage "fails to consider the capacity of businesses, especially small businesses, to absorb the substantially increased labor costs it will impose, killing jobs.”

In 2016, Christie vetoed a bill that would have hiked the minimum wage to $15 per hour by the year 2021.

• See related article: New Jersey Minimum Wage Going Up, But Not By Much
• See related article: Newark Airport Workers Hope For Better Shake Under Murphy

WHAT HAS MURPHY PROMISED WORKERS?

Murphy, the recipient of massive campaign contributions from labor unions, has laid some ambitious promises on the table for the state’s working class. Here are some pledges that he made on his campaign website in the days leading up to the election:

• “Raise minimum wage to $15 an hour, so that those who want to work can support their family and ensure that no one who works full time in 2017 lives in poverty.”
• “Guarantee earned sick leave statewide, because no one should have to choose between a job and caring for a loved one.”
• “Support legislation that strengthens penalties for wage discrimination, bans employers from asking job applicants for their salary history, and prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who discuss compensation.”
• “Oppose any effort to turn New Jersey into a right-to-work state, including national right-to-work legislation.”
• “Support efforts to ensure that striking workers are eligible for unemployment benefits after 30 days.”
• “Expand the EITC to 40 percent of federal level, so that working families can lift themselves out of poverty.”
• “Create a new child care and caregiver tax credit to alleviate the high cost of caring for a family in NJ.”
• “Restructure workforce funding to promote effective and innovative models of on-the-job training.”
• “Create programs that assist individuals with disabilities and ease re-entry for the formerly imprisoned.”
• “Work to close employment gaps in fields that have traditionally been inhospitable to women and minorities, including technology and the trades.”
• “Offer, just as a growing number of states do, a simple, opt-in retirement plan for small business employees.”
• “Prohibit employers from retaliating against employees who discuss compensation.”

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File Photo: 32BJ (SEIU) union members on strike at Newark Airport