Robert Cresanti, president and CEO of the International Franchise Association, calls the nationwide push for mandated minimum wages such as Colorado’s Initiative 101 an existential threat to the uniquely American and highly successful business model of franchising. ... But Bill Phelps, CEO of Wetzel’s Pretzels and an IFA member, counters that mandated minimum wage increases in California, where his company is based, have actually boosted business by giving employees more disposable income. ...
August 28, 2016

By Sean Forbes
Bloomberg BNA: Pension & Benefits Daily, August 15, 2016

Small business owners’ opinions about increasing minimum wages and offering attractive employee benefits aren’t as stereotypical as they might seem at first blush. John Swanciger, chief executive officer of Manta Media Inc., told Bloomberg BNA that based on recent surveys he’s conducted on minimum wages and employee benefits, small businesses should consider beefing up their benefits packages. ...

Chambers of Commerce. While the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other conservative groups have fought the Fight for $15 campaign to increase wages, some local chambers...

By Megan Schrader 
Colorado Springs Gazette, August 11, 2016

DENVER - Colorado voters will decide in November whether to bump the minimum wage from $8.31 to $9.30 an hour in 2017 and to $12 an hour by 2020.

A coalition of groups have poured $1 million into putting the proposed change to the Colorado Constitution on the ballot and Colorado Families for a Fair Wage learned Thursday that it had turned in enough valid signatures to put the question to voters. On the ballot it's likely to be Amendment 70.

"All the studies show that...

By Laurent Belsie
Christian Science Monitor, August 5, 2016

The big economic news Friday was that the United States economy added 255,000 new jobs in July, more than expected. But beyond the much-touted employment numbers was another development that offers at least a spark of hope for American workers: Wages are growing at their strongest annual pace in seven years, according the Labor Department figures.

The wage gains are still modest. Hourly earnings have risen 2.6 percent during the past year, faster than inflation but hardly robust growth. The question now is whether the report sets the stage...

Op-Ed By Bill Phelps, CEO, Wetzel’s Pretzels
... I’d like to give my business perspective and look at the real impact of minimum wage increases. ... Workers in California and other states are looking forward to consistent pay increases in the future. And I’m looking forward to continued growth for our business. ...

With minimum wages on the rise and new overtime legislation soon going into effect, restaurants are searching for ways to pay more—and still make a profit.

By Mary Avant
QSR Magazine, August 2016

... While minimum wage battles continue to rage at the state level, the federal government is also getting involved in the conversation over compensation, extending overtime pay to anyone making less than $47,476 annually (or $913 weekly). The law will go into effect December 1, and the Department of Labor says more than 4 million workers will be affected by the legislation within its...

By Judy Amabile
Special to the Denver Business Journal, July 29, 2016

Regarding Ed Sealover’s article “Colorado business groups launch campaign to defeat minimum-wage hike” (denverbusinessjournal.com, 7/19/2016).

As a made in “USA manufacturer,” I couldn’t disagree more with those opposing an increase in the minimum wage to $12/hour by 2020. This ballot initiative is a modest but good way to start making an economy that works for everyone, employers and employees alike.

Cities and states that have raised the minimum wage have experienced stable employment, thriving businesses and workers who can not only make ends...

Op-Ed By Judy Clinco
Arizona Daily Star, July 27, 2016

I founded my business in 1981 because I was unable to find compassionate and safe in-home care for my aging mother. I knew that other families in Tucson were searching for the same thing and coming up empty-handed, so I drew on my experience as a registered nurse to establish Catalina In-Home Services, Inc.

Having run my business for more than 35 years, I know how expensive and time-consuming it is to replace employees and train new ones. I also know that my employees are...

By Mark Belcher
Denver News 7 ABC, Jul 26, 2016

DENVER -- A group of business owners, families and supporters turned in petitions with 200,000 signatures pushing to see their measure to raise the minimum wage to $12 by 2020 on the November ballot. The group behind the large push is Colorado Families for a Fair Wage, representatives of which reported they more than doubled the needed 98,492 signatures needed for qualification. ...

"Gradually increasing Colorado's minimum wage to $12 by 2020 is the right thing for businesses," Yoav Lurie, CEO and founder of Simple Energy, said. "Higher...

By Lena Howland
KOAA 5, July 25, 2016

DENVER - Efforts to raise Colorado's minimum wage to $12 an hour are moving forward after Colorado Families for a Fair Wage submitted 200,000 signatures to the Secretary of State on Monday afternoon. ... The campaign held a rally in Denver on Monday, before turning in the signatures, which showcased dozens of supporters who want to see our minimum wage jump to $12 an hour by the year 2020.

"Let's raise the wage!" Yoav Lurie, CEO and Founder of Simple Energy in Boulder said. ...

It's something Yoav Lurie, owner...

By Peter Marcus
Durango Herald, July 25, 2016

DENVER – Proponents of an effort to gradually raise the minimum wage in Colorado submitted more than double the amount of signatures necessary to make the November ballot. Colorado Families for a Fair Wage submitted around 200,000 signatures to the Secretary of State’s Office on Monday. It takes 98,492 valid signatures to make the ballot. ... The effort would gradually raise the minimum wage to $12 by 2020. Proponents took the question to voters after the Legislature failed to act.

The proposal aims at addressing the current wage of $8.31, which hasn’t...

By Kate Gibson
CBS News MoneyWatch, July 22, 2016

Bill Phelps and Camille Moran run businesses in states with radically differing rules on what workers on the bottom rung of the income ladder should make, yet they hold similar views on the federal minimum wage, which on Sunday marks a seventh year stuck at $7.25 an hour.

Both feel an increase in the minimum wage is long over due -- it's been unchanged by Congress since July 24, 2009 -- and both pay their own employees accordingly.

"We pay our seasonal workers well over the...

Nightly Business Report produced by CNBC, Transcript, July 22, 2016

KATE ROGERS, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. federal minimum wage was hiked from $6.55 and hour to $7.25 nearly seven years ago, and that`s where it remained ever since. And while that debate has flatlined, the debate over wages has intensified. ... Despite periodic increases, the buying of the federal minimum wage hasn`t kept up with inflation, according to the Bureau [of] Labor Statistics. Data show that in 1968, the federal minimum was equivalent to $10.90 in 2015 dollars, nearly $4 higher than today`s rate.

For...

By Kate Rogers
CNBC, July 21, 2016

Nearly seven years after the federal minimum wage was raised to $7.25 an hour from $6.55, it has remained stagnant despite the increasingly heated debate over better pay and worker protections.

But that hasn't stopped Ken Weinstein from paying his workers more at his two restaurants in Pennsylvania, where the state minimum wage matches the federal floor.

Weinstein owns two Trolley Car Diners in Philadelphia, and decided two years ago to increase the minimum wage for his 75 employees to $8.50.

"It's a competitive thing — you certainly...

By Kate Rogers
CNBC, July 21, 2016

With the federal minimum wage stagnant at $7.25 for the past seven years, a debate has emerged over better worker protections and pay. Kate Rogers reports on what momentum for a higher wage means for Main Street.

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