As millions of low-wage workers—many of them in the food industry—wait for a federal minimum wage hike, cities and states are raising wages.
By Steve Holt
Take Part, June 25, 2014
...President Obama made a rather chaotic trip to Chipotle for lunch the other day...to highlight the chain's pay practices-starting wages for line workers average $10.50 an hour ...
Malia and Sasha Obama's summer jobs appear to be wrapped up in the push for a higher federal minimum wage too, judging by comments Michelle Obama made in a recent interview with Parade. When asked whether she’d support her daughters getting a minimum wage job, the first lady responded by saying, "Oh, yeah. I think every kid needs to get a taste of what it's like to do that real hard work." ...
Minimum wage earners in Massachusetts may soon receive a boost too. Last week, the House of Representatives in the Bay State passed a bill that would raise the wage floor from $8 to $11 by 2017—the highest of any state in the nation. “Massachusetts led the nation in passing the first state minimum wage a century ago in June, 1912, and Massachusetts will again be leading with an $11 wage floor that is good for business, good for customers and good for our economy,” said Holly Sklar, director of Boston-based Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, in a statement.
Steve Holt is a regular contributor to TakePart. He writes about food for 'Edible Boston,' 'Boston Magazine,' 'The Boston Globe,' and other publications.