Alaska Business Magazine, November 6, 2024
Among all the issues voters decided at the November 5 election, Ballot Measure 1 affects Alaska businesses most directly. ...
“When you pay decent wages and provide paid time off, employees are healthier and more productive. This initiative will boost customer spending, reduce employee turnover, and help businesses, and communities thrive,” says Carey Fristoe, co-owner of Black Spruce Brewing Co. in Fairbanks. “I am honored to have been just one of over 130 businesses that supported this measure.”
Another one of those businesses is Kodiak Island Brewing. Owner Ben Millstien says, “The minimum wage has not kept up with the cost of living. The economy will improve when working people are not struggling for subsistence.”
Alaska now joins Missouri, which also just passed a wage and hour initiative, and fourteen other states and the District of Columbia that currently have a minimum wage of $15 or higher, or are phasing in such increases. ...
“As a small business owner, I know that paying a living wage and providing sick leave is an investment that has paid off,” says Vered Mares, owner of The Writer’s Block Bookstore & Café in Anchorage and a member of the Alaska Business for Better Jobs coalition, which campaigned in favor of Ballot Measure 1. “It means I have a more dedicated and happier staff, elevated customer service, and more genuine connections our team builds with bookstore and café customers. Being sick is bad enough; it shouldn’t determine whether you can pay rent or risk spreading illness to coworkers or customers. And when the ballot measure provides needed pay increases for workers, that pay increase will go right back into Alaska’s economy.” ...
Other small businesses expect to adapt. Derrick Green, owner of Waffles and Whatnot in Anchorage and treasurer of the Alaska Black Chamber of Commerce, says, “More income circulating throughout our communities strengthens our customer base and our economy. And I know as a restaurant owner, it makes more sense to have better wages and low employee turnover than low wages and high turnover.”
Tim Hemme, owner of Alaska Kayak Company in Ketchikan, predicts that Alaskans will be better off once the initiative is phased in. “Ballot Measure 1’s passage will mean more people can afford necessities and be healthier,” Hemme says. “People will be able to purchase more goods and services in our local economies. Alaskans’ overall well-being will be improved alongside Alaska’s economy.” ...