By Heesun Wee, Editor CNBC.com
CNBC, March 26, 2013

The fight over an increase to the minimum wage ... has already begun in Congress. And small employers on both sides of the issue — armed with plenty of Tweets, videos, press releases and data — have entered the fray. ...

backers of a higher minimum wage have been busy too, cobbling together press releases — complete with names, locations and comments from small-business owners. High-profile CEOs of publicly-traded companies such as Costco and Starbucks have also stepped into the minimum-wage debate. ...

Supporters include the...

By Liz Skoczylas
The Post-Journal (Jamestown) and Observer (Dunkirk), March 21, 2013

Gillibrand To Push For $10.10 Federal Minimum Wage; Says Business Will Benefit

Raising the minimum wage in New York state would actually be a positive for small business owners, according to U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

She announced this Tuesday, along with a new effort to increase the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $10.10 over the next three years. Additionally, she called for future increases indexed to the rate of inflation. ...

In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for minimum wage...

By James T. Madore
Newsday (LI), March 20, 2013

Advocates of raising the minimum wage Tuesday hailed a tentative deal among the state's top leaders to boost the wage to $9, while opponents were relieved the increase will be phased in. ...

Watch Video

The tentative deal, to be included in the state's 2013-14 budget, calls for the minimum to climb to $9 an hour by the end of 2015, according to aides to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, the Assembly's Democratic majority and the Senate's governing coalition. ...

John J. Corrado, president of Suffolk Transportation Service...

By Casey Seiler, Capitol Bureau Chief
Capitol Confidential, Albany Times Union, March 19, 2013

As Albany grapples with the push to raise the minimum wage statewide, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand wants to see the federal wage — which hasn’t gone up in four years — boosted to $10.10 over the next three years, with indexing to inflation for future increases.

In a Tuesday conference call with reporters, the Democrat noted that for low-wage workers the record-high closings for the financial markets “doesn’t put food on the table or gas in their cars — they’re just trying...

By Sarah Meehan
Baltimore Business Journal, March 19, 2013

... a higher minimum wage is not cause for concern at all eateries across the state. Andy Shallal owns Busboys & Poets, which has two locations in Washington, D.C., and one in Hyattsville. ...

“Often times I think we talk about the sky is falling,” Shallal said. “We’re just feeding people a lot of fear and falsehoods.”

The minimum wage in D.C. is already higher than Maryland’s at $8.25, and employees are paid comparably at all three Busboys & Poets locations, Shallal said. There are three tiers...

News 12 Long Island, March 19, 2013

WOODBURY - A state budget agreement is likely near now that lawmakers have reportedly reached a deal to raise New York's minimum wage.

Several Long Island business owners hailed the reported minimum wage agreement ...

Full story

By Pamela M. Prah
Stateline News Service, March 15 2013

At least 10 states are considering raising their minimum wages even as President Obama's proposal to increase the federal standard is stuck in Washington's political quagmire. In one of those states, New Jersey, voters rather than legislators will decide the issue. A measure that will be on the ballot this fall would increase the state’s minimum wage by $1, to $8.25.

The New Jersey measure also would take politicians out of future hourly wage increases by including automatic annual adjustments for inflation, known as "indexing."...

UPI, March 13, 2013

... Last month, a Walmart email asked "Where have all the customers gone and where's their money?" Business analysts said the stagnant sales might be due to the end of the payroll tax holiday that ended Jan. 1. The federal tax break was designed to boost consumer spending and added about $19 a week to many paychecks during the last two years.

While Costco's discount peers Target Corp., Sam's Club and Walmart Stores logged weaker sales in February, Costco continued to generate consistent, strong growth across all general merchandise categories, The Wall...

By Becca Heller
Maryland Reporter, March 10 2013

An initiative to raise minimum wage to $10 an hour in two years promises to be among the most controversial economic issues debated at the Maryland General Assembly this year. … 

Still, proponents of the bill remain steadfast in their belief that this hike in wages would not only be the fair thing to do for low-income workers, but also act as a stimulant to Maryland’s still struggling economy.

“Raising the minimum wage will help small businesses like my members by putting more money in the pockets...

By Michael Kling
MoneyNews, March 8, 2013 

... “At Costco, we know that paying employees good wages makes good sense for business,” Jelinek said in a press release from Business for a Fair Minimum Wage. “We pay a starting hourly wage of $11.50 in all states where we do business, and we are still able to keep our overhead costs low.” 

The membership-based retailer believes it succeeds by attracting and retaining good employees, he noted. That strategy boosts profits in the long run by decreasing turnover and improving employee productivity. 

A bill before Congress would...

This Week From the Hill By Allie Morris and Simone Pathe
PBS NewsHour, March 8, 2013 

$10.10 is the new $7.25. At least that's what Senator Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., are hoping. At a packed press conference in the Dirksen Senate offices Tuesday, the pair proposed legislation that would raise the federal minimum wage up to $10.10 an hour, from the current minimum of $7.25, in three 95-cent increments. ...

Harkin said that a higher minimum wage will benefit the economy by putting more money in consumers' pockets. "With an increase...

HR Policy, March 8, 2013

This week, Senate HELP Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Rep. George Miller (D-CA) introduced legislation to increase the minimum wage to $10.10 over three years, over a dollar higher than proposed by President Obama.  As with the President's proposal, the bill (S. 460/H.R. 1010) would also index later increases to inflation. At a press conference, Sen. Harkin said the current $7.25 per hour "has become a poverty wage" and that it is "basic economics" that paying more would increase both spending and demand. U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce CEO...

Op-Ed By Guido H. Stempel III
Athens Ohio Today, March 8, 2013

President Obama set off a dialogue about the minimum wage when he suggested in his State of the Union message that it should be raised to $9 an hour.

We immediately began hearing from those who said this would increase unemployment and those who said analysis of what happened in the past when the minimum wage was raised showed that unemployment did not increase. Then a group of liberals suggested it would be $10 an hour.

The best word, but undoubtedly not the...

MSNBC NewsNation with Tamron Hall, March 08, 2013

http://video.msnbc.msn.com/newsnation/51105128

Costco CEO Craig Jelinek is adding his voice to the calls for raising the nation’s minimum wage. Margot Dorfman talks to Tamron Hall about what this means for the minimum wage movement, as well as the new Democratic bill that would raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10/hour.

TH: welcome back. the ceo of one of the country's biggest retailers costco is joining president obama calling for an increase in the minimum wage. costco 's ceo says instead of minimizing wages, it is profitable in...

By Becca Heller
Baltimore Post Examiner, March 8, 2013

A bill to raise Maryland’s minimum wage to $10 an hour drew 46 witnesses Thursday to a Senate hearing on the divisive issue. ...

Supporters of the bill argue that the minimum wage hike would create an upturn in the economy by putting money into the pockets of consumers.

“Our members support raising minimum wage because it addresses one of the biggest problems that we see facing the economy and that’s weak demand,” said Bryan McGannon of the American Sustainable Business Council.

Read more

Becca@MarylandReporter.com