News

Council Adopts Graham $11.75/hr Living Wage Proposal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Alan Heymann
(202) 727-8229

November 2, 2005

Washington, DC –The DC Council today accepted Councilmember Jim Graham’s (D-Ward One) proposal to establish a living wage in the District of Columbia at $11.75 per hour. This represents an increase of 50 cents per hour over the original proposal.

“This is an important step forward for a living wage for the people, including District government employees,” said Councilmember Graham. “We are not finished with this bill. More needs to be changed, but I’m very pleased to sponsor this increase.”

Graham submitted a fiscal impact statement from the Chief Financial Officer showing a $300,000 annual cost for the DC government. The $11.75 living wage would be the second highest in the Washington metropolitan area. (The City of Alexandria has $11.80 per hour.)

There is, at present, no “living wage” in DC. The current minimum wage is $6.60, set to increase to $7.00 on January 1, 2006. The living wage proposal would apply to DC government employees and to those whose employers receive direct economic advantages from the DC government.

According to the DC Fiscal Policy Institute, one in seven DC workers earns too little to lift a family above poverty even if they work full-time. The gap between high and low-income residents is wider than in any other major city, and DC’s unemployment rate in 2004 was 5th highest among major cities.

DC for Democracy states that a living wage results in lower turnover and higher productivity for business. The community benefits from lower public assistance costs and better service. About 20% of the population in the United States is presently covered by living wage laws.

###