Governor Kathy Hochul said on Wednesday that the minimum wage outside of New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County will raise from $13.20 to $14.
In addition, the minimum wage for home care aides in the counties of upstate New York will raise to $16.20 per hour.
New York Wage Hike
Roberta Reardon, the commissioner of the New York State Department of Labor, stated, By increasing the minimum wage, we are helping to elevate our neighbors throughout New York State.
Advancing the multi-year rises has enabled low-wage individuals to better sustain themselves and their families while assisting firms to adapt to the constant adjustments.
The minimum wage in New York is determined by the location and industry of the worker. This wage rise will assist almost 200,000 New Yorkers in upstate counties, 44% of whom are full-time employees and nearly 25% of whom support children under the age of 18.
The state of New York approved minimum wage legislation in 2016, with the first hikes taking effect in December of that year. The annual hikes for the state outside of the downstate areas will continue until they reach $15 per hour and will be determined by the director of the state budget using economic indices such as the Consumer Price Index.
Now, some politicians are pressuring the state of New York to go further, citing high inflation rates and the high cost of living in metropolitan regions.
In New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County, the minimum wage will increase to $21.25 per hour during a three-year period, from 2024 to 2026, if a plan sponsored by legislators is approved during the upcoming parliamentary session.
The plan would raise the minimum wage for the remainder of the state to $20 per hour in 2026 and $21.25 the following year. In 2021, a version of the law was introduced in the Legislature, but it did not advance.
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Business Owners Express Opposition
Legislators and activists claim that these figures represent what New York’s wage would be now if it had been raised annually since 2019 to account for cost-of-living rises and worker productivity advances.
Working families desperately need a minimum wage that shields them from the miseries of rising costs, according to Assemblymember Latoya Joyner, D-Bronx, a cosponsor of the measure and head of the Assembly Labor Committee.
New York was a national pioneer on minimum wage when its legislative package was approved six years ago, but today dozens of towns and counties have salaries above $15 per hour, the Raise Up NY Coalition stated in November when it started its minimum wage campaign.
However, business leaders are apprehensive of the proposal, stating that it will exacerbate the numerous obstacles small firms had during the COVID-19 outbreak and its aftermath.
The National Federation of Independent Businesses New York state director Ashley Ranslow said in a November statement that New York’s small businesses, from Long Island to Buffalo, are facing unending financial hardships, including labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, and escalating utility costs.
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