AUGUSTA – In a roll call on a hot election-year issue, the Maine Senate voted Tuesday to ratchet up the state’s minimum wage in two stages from $6.50 to $7 an hour by October 2007.
After a 19-16 tally that closely followed party lines, with majority Democrats winning out, senators also turned back two amendments that would have weakened the bill.
The House a month ago voted for the measure, but additional votes in both chambers are needed before it can be sent to Gov. John Baldacci, who supports a minimum wage hike.
During Tuesday’s debate, supporters said it’s time for the state to stand up for Maine’s least-skilled, lowest-paid workers, some of whom work two or more jobs to raise families and get by.
“Minimum wage people are all over this state,” said Democratic Sen. Bill Diamond of Windham. “We can’t pretend they don’t exist. They’re real people.”
Sen. Ethan Strimling, D-Portland, said the increase, which would start with a quarter per hour this October, would not add up to a great deal for minimum wage earners, about 4 percent per year.
“What we are really talking about is $10 a week,” said Strimling. “A gallon of gas, a loaf of bread … a few extra pieces of chicken.”
But opponents said they were sympathetic to small businesses that employ many of the minimum wage earners, saying a mandated pay increase will be another cost for mom-and-pop operations to contend with.
“It’s the little guys” who will be affected, said Sen. Jonathan Courtney, R-Springvale.
Republican Sen. Richard Nass of Acton said bills that weaken Maine retailers’ competitive standing don’t go unnoticed in New Hampshire, the only New England state that sticks with the federal minimum of $5.15 an hour. New Hampshire’s Senate last May rejected an effort to raise the state’s minimum to $6.15 per hour.
Nass said increased base pay will give border-area retailers in Maine’s neighboring state one more advantage in keeping their prices lower and drawing more Maine customers.
“They work the border and this is part of it,” said Nass, who worked for a dozen years in the New Hampshire Legislature as a lobbyist. “It’s now time to realize this doesn’t work and try something new … the market system.”
Democratic Sen. Philip Bartlett II of Gorham countered that the 25 cent per hour increases will have little or no effect on most businesses or prices. By passing the bill, “We’re helping those who’ve been left behind,” said Bartlett.
Maine’s minimum wage-earners received their most recent increase last fall under a bill signed into law in 2004 by the Democratic governor. That law raised the hourly minimum by 25 cents an hour to $6.50 an hour in two phases through October 2005.
—
On the Net:
U.S. Labor Department, minimum wage: www.dol.gov/dol/topic/wages/minimumwage.htm
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.