Hawaii lawmakers consider minimum wage hike
Hawaii's House Committee on Labor and Public Employment heard testimony earlier this month on a time and attendance proposal that would raise the state's minimum wage by one dollar.
The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii has spoken out against the initiative, arguing that a rate increase would prove too much to absorb for many of the approximately 800 small businesses it represents.
"The enactment of a minimum wage increase at this time … will undermine efforts made to turn Hawaii's economy around," said chamber president and CEO Jim Tollefson, as quoted by The Associated Press.
However, many of the state's low-income workers are struggling to make ends meet due to the fact that Hawaii's minimum wage is under the federal poverty level. According to state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations figures cited by the news source, inflation has caused the current rate of $7.25 to be worth 84 cents less than when it was set five years ago.
KHON-TV reports that approximately 1.7 percent (10,000) of the state's workers are paid minimum wage.
The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii has spoken out against the initiative, arguing that a rate increase would prove too much to absorb for many of the approximately 800 small businesses it represents.
"The enactment of a minimum wage increase at this time … will undermine efforts made to turn Hawaii's economy around," said chamber president and CEO Jim Tollefson, as quoted by The Associated Press.
However, many of the state's low-income workers are struggling to make ends meet due to the fact that Hawaii's minimum wage is under the federal poverty level. According to state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations figures cited by the news source, inflation has caused the current rate of $7.25 to be worth 84 cents less than when it was set five years ago.
KHON-TV reports that approximately 1.7 percent (10,000) of the state's workers are paid minimum wage.
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