Quinn's Minimum Wage Hike Not All Popular
From the Southern Illinoisan
Business groups and lawmakers say Gov. Pat Quinn’s bid to boost the minimum wage would bring job creation in Illinois to a screeching halt.
In his State of the State speech Wednesday, Quinn said he is supporting a proposal that would increase the $8.25 an hour level to $10 over the course of four years.
“Nobody in Illinois should work 40 hours and live in poverty. That’s a principle as old as the Bible,” Quinn said.
Illinois is among 18 states with minimum wage rates higher than the national level of $7.25 an hour. The rate was last raised in July 2010 as part of a phased-in increase initiated by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich in 2006.
Kim Clarke Maisch, state director of the National Federation of Independent Business, said it is ironic Quinn is telling small business owners how to run their businesses when the state budget is a mess.
“Our members had hoped Gov. Quinn would use his State of the State address to talk about how Illinois can once again become a premier state to do business in. Unfortunately, he chose to embrace a minimum wage hike which will do little but cause small businesses to cut employee hours and jobs,” Maisch said.
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From the Southern Illinoisan
Business groups and lawmakers say Gov. Pat Quinn’s bid to boost the minimum wage would bring job creation in Illinois to a screeching halt.
In his State of the State speech Wednesday, Quinn said he is supporting a proposal that would increase the $8.25 an hour level to $10 over the course of four years.
“Nobody in Illinois should work 40 hours and live in poverty. That’s a principle as old as the Bible,” Quinn said.
Illinois is among 18 states with minimum wage rates higher than the national level of $7.25 an hour. The rate was last raised in July 2010 as part of a phased-in increase initiated by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich in 2006.
Kim Clarke Maisch, state director of the National Federation of Independent Business, said it is ironic Quinn is telling small business owners how to run their businesses when the state budget is a mess.
“Our members had hoped Gov. Quinn would use his State of the State address to talk about how Illinois can once again become a premier state to do business in. Unfortunately, he chose to embrace a minimum wage hike which will do little but cause small businesses to cut employee hours and jobs,” Maisch said.
Read more in our daily News Update...