Kentucky Raises Minimum Wage for State Workers, Urges Businesses To Do the Same

The hourly minimum wage for state workers in Kentucky is being raised from $7.25 to $10.10, Gov. Steve Beshear announced Monday.

The wage increase affects 510 state employees and will cost taxpayers $1.6 million. A third of the affected employees work in state nursing homes for military veterans, according to Beshear. Other wage changes include an increase of the hourly tipped minimum wage from $2.19 to $4.90. The policy will go into effect July 1.

Beshear took to Twitter to rigorously defend the new policy.

Raising state government’s #minimumwage will help reduce turnover in low-paying jobs, which increases productivity & reduces inefficiency.

— Steve Beshear (@GovSteveBeshear) June 8, 2015

The increase for state employees sends a message to private business, says Beshear.

.#Kentucky businesses should follow the example we’re setting as the state’s largest employer & raise the #minimumwage for their workers

— Steve Beshear (@GovSteveBeshear) June 8, 2015

Beshear joins Democrat House Speaker Greg Stumbo and many of his party’s state representatives in his fight for higher minimum wages for Kentuckians. Rep. Stumbo has been advocating for legislation raising the minimum wage for all workers in Kentucky in recent legislative sessions. The bill has passed the Democratic controlled House but is facing opposition in the Republican senate. The hike comes amid national calls for a minimum wage increase to $15 per hour.

The movement has seen success in recent months, with $15 minimum wages having been established in Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The issue is also gaining the attention of 2016 presidential hopefuls; Hillary Clinton echoed wage activists in a speech delivered at a convention of low-wage workers in Detroit on Sunday, stating that she supports a $15 minimum wage.

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