Gas, housing and groceries: The staples of living and working are increasing for workers as inflation continues apace in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Employers, too, are seeing higher prices affect their bottom lines: Energy and fuel costs are skyrocketing as are the cost of materials and labor.
It's against that backdrop that New York labor officials are proposing a $1 increase in the minimum wage for counties north of Westchester. If given final approval, the wage would reach $14.20 by the end of the year.
"The typical worker who will be helped is a woman in her late 20s or 30s working close to full time hours as a home health aide or a restaurant worker or a retail worker," said Paul Sonn, of the National Employment Law Project.
But this wage increase could spur further action in the Legislature to approve the first minimum wage increase since 2016 in New York.
"While upstate's living costs are a little lower, it was way too low," Sonn said. "The upstate wage is never going to catch up until the Legislature acts."
New York's minimum wage is based on a deal reached between then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the Republicans who controlled the state Senate six years ago. At the time, Republicans argued the cost of living in upstate New York was far different than in New York City and the surrounding area.
As a result, the push for a $15 minimum wage was phased in for the metropolitan area. It's yet to reach that target upstate.
But progressive advocates have argued the wage...
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