What's the real impact of higher wages? US lawmakers came to Seattle looking for answers.
At $17.27 per hour, Seattle’s minimum wage is the highest in the country. But how much has that helped the economy?
That’s the main question the U.S. House Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth hoped to answer in their field hearing earlier this month.
Local governments around the country are closely watching how the Puget Sound region fares with mandated increases in baseline worker protections, benefits, and pay. Whether other cities will follow Seattle's lead rests on the evidence — and business leaders and advocates still disagree on the take-home message.
The minimum wage has helped increase pay for older low-income professionals, according to research from the economics department at the University of Washington.
https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2022/08/24/government-regulations-minimum-wage-hazard-pay-uw.html