Maine Republicans introduce eight bills to roll back minimum wage increases

Despite widespread support for a higher minimum wage than the current $12 an hour in Maine, Republican legislators have introduced eight bills to roll back parts of Maine’s minimum wage law or inhibit municipalities from raising pay above the state’s wage floor.

With Democrats holding majorities in the Maine House and Senate, it’s unlikely the GOP attacks on the minimum wage will advance. The bills may also fail to win Republicans favor with the public, given that raising the minimum wage from $7.50 an hour in 2016 to $12 in 2020 has made quantifiable improvements to the living standards of thousands of Mainers.

“The record for Maine’s voter-approved minimum wage law is clear: Boosting the minimum wage has improved living conditions for working families, decreased child poverty, and strengthened Maine’s economy,” said Maine Center for Economic Policy communications director Mario Moretto. “When working families can make ends meet and keep up with basic spending, they spend money in their communities, supporting long-term economic growth and jobs.”

In 2016, 55.5 percent of Maine voters chose to raise the state’s minimum wage, which was then just slightly above the federal floor of $7.25, to $12 an hour by 2020 and then indexing year-to-year increases to the cost of living. On Jan. 1, roughly 52,900 workers saw a wage increase to $12.15 an hour when Maine’s first-ever automatic cost of living adjustment was implemented.

Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/maine-republicans-introduce-eight-bills-to-roll-back-minimum-wage-increases/