RI House Approves Minimum Wage Increase

Workers who earn the minimum wage in Rhode Island could be paid $9.60 per hour on the first day of 2016 after the Rhode Island House of Representatives on Tuesday voted for the increase.

The state Senate is set to vote on identical legislation Wednesday night, which is expected — along with Governor Gina Raimondo’s signature to finalize the increase.

Rhode Island’s minimum wage has gone up each year since 2013, when lawmakers, notably Sen. Erin Lynch and Representative David A. Bennett, both Democrats representing Warwick and Cranston, began to push for incremental increases.

Before 2013, the state’s minimum wage stood at $7.40 and hadn’t been touched for six years.

In January, the wage increased from $8 to $9 and if it becomes $9.60 next year, Rhode Island will have parity with Connecticut, which has a $9.60 minimum wage that is set to increase to $10.10 in 2017. In Massachusetts, meanwhile, the wage will be $10 in 2016 and $11 in 2017.

“Raising the minimum wage provides a bump for the people who need it most, those at or near the bottom of the pay scale,” Bennet (D-Dist. 20), said. ”They are also the people most likely to spend that money right away on goods and services, so the increase goes right back into the local economy, helping local businesses. A stronger minimum wage will mean a stronger economy for Rhode Island.”

Bennett added that minimum wage increases, particularly those aimed at bringing Rhode Island’s wage up to the level of surrounding states, ”help employees without putting their companies at a competitive disadvantage, since they apply to all employers. Raising employees’ salaries can also help taxpayers by reducing low-earning workers’ reliance on government assistance,” according to a release.

President Barack Obama had called for a $10.10 minimum wage in his 2014 State of the Union address. Bennett and Lynch said they agreed to a compromise to get the bill passed this legislative session.

There has been some resistance to the wage increase, notably from small business owners who have small staffs.