Raise minimum wage?
Huntsman task force will decide if it's time
"Even though I'm a good Republican, I'm a little bit concerned that during the course of (seven) years, we've seen no adjustment in the minimum wage," the governor said. "I'm open to some recommendations."
Huntsman has established a new task force to decide whether it's time to boost the earnings of those at the bottom of the pay scale, after being criticized for signing legislation banning local governments from giving preference to vendors that pay what's known as a living wage.
A living wage, defined as enough money to meet the basic needs of a worker and his or her dependents, is several dollars higher than the minimum wage. Lawmakers had already stopped communities from establishing living wages for residents.
Advocates for the state's disadvantaged residents don't expect to see a living wage in Utah anytime soon. But they say increasing the minimum wage would be a good start to making life better for the working poor.
"We recognize there's probably not the political will to implement a living wage in the state of Utah at this time," Pam Silberman, welfare and work supports policy analyst for Utah Issues, said. "Raising the minimum wage would certainly impact the working poor."
Silberman said the minimum wage would need to go to $7 an hour to give workers the same buying power as the 1968 rate of $1.60 an hour had. That means even a $1.85 hike in the minimum wage would only be keeping pace with inflation.
"You're pretty much keeping pace. It's certainly not a living wage," Silberman said. "The purchasing power of the federal minimum wage has slipped since 1968." Like many states, Utah has set its minimum wage at the federal rate.
That's changing, though, since Congress has rejected several attempts to increase the federal rate in recent years. Huntsman said some 31 states, including Nevada, have either raised their minimum wage or are considering taking action.
Voters in Nevada, for example, approved an initiative petition last year that would raise the state's $5.15-an-hour rate by $1. To take effect, the petition must be approved by voters a second time in 2006, but Nevada lawmakers may go ahead and increase the rate this year.
"Raising the minimum wage is the best way to fight poverty," the bill raising the rate in Nevada states, noting full-time workers would receive an additional $2,000 a year, "enough to make a big difference in the lives of low-income workers to move many families out of poverty."
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