2007 Senate Bill 5 (Increase Kentucky minimum wage 41% by 2009)

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Introduced by Sen. Ernesto Scorsone on January 2, 2007, to increase the state minimum wage to $5.85 an hour on the effective date of this Act, to $6.55 an hour effective July 1, 2008, and to $7.25 an hour effective July 1, 2009. The bill would increase Kentucky's minimum wage to the federal minimum wage rate if that rate exceeds the state minimum wage rate.
- Referred to the Senate Economic Development, Tourism & Labor Committee on January 4, 2007.

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Comments

Introduced by Sen. Ernesto Scorsone on January 2, 2007. New Comment

1) Stop buying pointless stuff! [by Anonymous Citizen on July 2, 2008]
Most people complain about the prices going up on things like bread and milk and of course gas yet most of these people keep buying DVDs at Wal-Mart and getting digital sattelite systems. Get rid of the pointless stuff and it'll be easier, not perfect but easier.
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2) KYMOM [by Anonymous Citizen on July 1, 2008]
INCREASE OR NO INCREASE - IT WILL NOT MATTER!

I have been seeking a suitable job for over a year now. I have over ten years experience in my field of work, and six years in a secondary field of work. Yet every interview I encountered had the same rate of pay which I started out with fifteen years ago! Seven or eight dollars an hour was fine when milk was only $1.89 a gallon.
I am a divorced mother of two young children, whose military father conveniently evades child support. I could have burdened the tax payers further by receiving KTAP, but I choose to work and provide for my family. After all, I am a taxpayer too.
What's your point, you might ask? The point is this: prices are going to continue to rise and keep rising, whether the there is an increase in wage or not.
The ratio of increased consumer cost is much greater than the ratio of increased wages. If you don't agree, generate your own study of wage increase for a receptionist in Kentucky.
My conclusion is that the minute increase in minimum wage will have no affect on my poor salary, yet prices will continue to rise nontheless.
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3) Look at the whole picture [by Anonymous Citizen on July 18, 2008]
KY mom, you aren't looking at the whole picture. Sure, raising the min wage looks good to those getting it, but how do you think employers who provide goods and services in the min wage market will make up for having to increase their wage payout? They raise their prices ON TOP OF the price going up because of everything else, as you state in your post it does anyway. So, in effect, those who got a raise because of this legislation will pretty much see a negative net gain, while those that were above the min wage in the begining will see a net defecit. One move isn't isolated from the other as some seem to think.
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4) mininum wage [by Anonymous Citizen on July 21, 2008]
The idea that employers raise the costs of goods because of a usa mininum wage increase is total nonsense.They said that would happen the last several times the mininum wage was increase , and employers never raise the costs and prices on goods because of a mininum wage increase.This is same thing we always heard from people against mininum wages increases , they always fall back on there same as usual FEAR TACTICS , but no real facts to back it up.Costs of goods do not go up in prices because of a mininum wages increases.It other factors that cause the price of goods and food to go up in prices , and not the facts that the usa or states mininum wages were increase for the workers who need it the most , the poor/low income/less fortunate/home-less.
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5) gov. gives there self a raise [by Anonymous Citizen on April 28, 2008]
theres one thing i do know is ever time the gov. raise's the min. wage they get more money lot of people dont know this take a look at this example.
person works 40hrs @ 5.85=234.00 now X 7.65% payroll tax= 17.90 now give this person a incress
40hrsx 6.55=200.45 x 7.65% tax =20.04 cool the gov. just gave them self a 2.14 raise per ever person in the U.S that makes min. wage.this is a 11% gp % rase man i wish i could do that. and this dosnt count the worksman comp. companies, insurance, and unemployement who charges % on the payroll and you wonder if the cost of things will go up HA. anyway thats why they make the big bucks
good luck to the U.S
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6) Kentucky Woman [by Anonymous Citizen on April 16, 2008]
Have you stopped and looked at how the cost of living has increased since the minimum wage increase? This doesn't help people in poverty at all. The cost of milk has risen to almost $4 per gallon, detergent at Wal-Mart has risen astronomically, a loaf of bread is almost $2. After the July 1st increase this year, watch the prices rise again.
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7) Independent [by Anonymous Citizen on May 26, 2008]
I own a grocery store in north eastern Kentucky. Since the wage increase it is amazing how grocery prices have gone up. Where is the benefit for the workers? I think tax credits for $5.85 per hours workers would make more of an inpact.
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8) Newmark excellent [by Anonymous Citizen on October 16, 2007]
I just want to say that the user newmark has made some excellent points regarding min wage.

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9) AUTOMATIC INCREASE IN THE USA MININUM WAGE [by KENTUCKYCOUNTRY on April 15, 2007]
It time to stop playing politics with the usa mininum wage and give all workers who are earning a wage on the usa mininum wage a fair and living wage.We need a automatic increase in the usa federal mininum wage by at least $2.00- dollars per hour every 04-years every time we elect a usa president into office.We need a automatic increase in the usa federal mininum wage every 04-years until we see and get a usa federal mininum wage that pays all workers and wage earners a hourly pay wage of at least $12.00- to $14.00- dollars per hour.It is always the republicans in office and the republican party who are always and i mean always against raising the usa mininum wage wage that will help the poor / low-income /less-fortunate and homeless.I have always seen republicans do everything they can to take money away from the poor and the people who need it the most , and at the same time they do everything they can to give more money to the rich / wealthy and the special interests ( that the way it looks and seems to me ).
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10) Min. Wage [by Anonymous Citizen on February 22, 2008]
It needs to go up by the $2.00 more
an hour. Families are going without
basic needs because min. wage is to low.
Gas is now over $3.08 and if you work 40 hours a week 1 day of your check is gone just to fill up your gas tank.

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11) it won't help [by newmark on April 17, 2007]
We've been over this in another thread. It won't help to simply increase minimum wage. The economy will counteract any minimum wage increase. We've seen this already in the increase in prices in restaurants in the Northern Kentucky area. Prices are already going up here because Ohio's minimum wage has gone up, and many of the restaurants here are Ohio-based, or have Ohio-based suppliers.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070331/BIZ01/703310334/-1/all

Pay special attention to "Taking It Away". Empirical data that shows that minimum wage increases have already pushed the prices of food up to where this guy, who was making more than the old minimum wage, but less than the new minimum wage, has been hurt already by the increase.

As I've stated in response to other legislation, minimum wage increases hurt the low wage worker, not help.

The money comes from somewhere. Where do you think it comes from? A tree? The heavens? It comes from all of us, in the form of increased prices. Do you expect businesses to absorb that cost? Then you're mistaken. The costs are passed through to the consumer.

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12) MININUM WAGE HELPS THE LESS FORTUNATE [by KENTUCKYCOUNTRY on April 19, 2007]
How can anyone say and even sugguest that raising the usa mininum hurts the poor / low income / less fortunate , that is nothing but nonsense.We always hear the republicans talk up the fear and hate campaigns when it comes to raising the usa mininum wage.We all know that some people will lose there jobs on a temp basics , but in the long haul the working poor are much better off because of the opportunity of making a much higher hourly pay scale rate.We always hear the same old tune over and over again from the republican party when it comes to any chance of raising the usa mininum wage that will help the poor and low income and less fortunate.I always see republicans in elected office doing everything they can to help the rich and wealthy and special interests , while at the same time they do everything they can to hurt and take away money and income away from the poor / low-income / less fortunate / homeless.I am let to see any strong efforts by any republicans to do anything that will help the poor and low income over the rich and wealthy and special interests. [ i always see the republican party doing everything they can to help the rich and wealthy , while at the same time doing everything they can to hurt the poor/less-fortunate/low-income/homeless ].I could be mistaken but that the way it looks to me.
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13) not about hate, it's about economics [by newmark on April 23, 2007]
First, since some association with Republicans and Minimum Wage is being made, I'd like to again reiterate that I'm not a Republican. On that same topic, Republicans have abandoned those principles, and if you look at the votes on the bill that did pass the KY House and Senate, with a veto-proof margin I might add, you'll see that yes, some Republicans voted against it. Other Republicans did vote for the increase, and without their votes, it would not have been a veto-proof majority.

Second, to the somewhat unrelated point of Republicans "doing everything they can to help the rich and wealthy and special interests", they are a bought and paid-for political party, I agree. But if you think the Democratic Party is any different, you just haven't looked deep enough. Who is against the deportation of illegal immigrants, who take jobs away from Americans because they work, under the table, for half of minimum wage? And I'm not really for deportation, or a complete blocking of immigration. But the situation is out of control, and neither party serves our interests to resolve the issue.

Next, let's look at the statement, "We all know that some people will lose there jobs on a temp basics , but in the long haul the working poor are much better off because of the opportunity of making a much higher hourly pay scale rate." How ridiculous is it to intentionally harm some lower-wage workers to (allegedly) benefit other lower-wage workers? Those positions don't come back over time, they go overseas, or over the border, where the Mexican labor and Chinese labor is far cheaper. And the quality of these goods is lower. Our goods used to be of higher quality, and therefore could compete with cheaper, lower-quality goods, because in the long-run, American goods generally lasted longer. But the American public only seems to care about quantity, not quality (see also: WalMart), and therefore the US continues to lose out. And I don't blame WalMart. They're bringing a product to the consumer, the consumer obviously wants to buy, based on WalMart's sales numbers. Even if the jobs do come back over time, is it fair to intentionally cause families harm every few years (or every 2 years, as you have proposed in the past), leading to instability in the home?

The value of a dollar used to based on something real. It used to be based on how much Gold and Silver we had in the Federal Reserve. So at one time, including when minimum wage was enacted in the United States, minimum wage could have actually had an effect. Because there was a finite amount of money, giving more to the bottom meant that those above them -- whether way above, or just above -- had to give up some of their money to acheive this, economically. However, today the value of a dollar is based upon the "value of the economy". The simple calculation here is to divide the number of dollars in circulation into the "value" of the economy, and you get the value of a dollar. The US government now just prints money to cover shortfalls in the treasury, caused by any number of factors. This directly causes inflation -- the value of a dollar goes down when more is added to circulation. The federal government quit reporting the number of dollars in circulation as of March 2006. Which likely means we're already in for a period of massive inflation anyway, I guess we might as well pile-on.

Also, the increase will increase the wages of between 9% and 16% of Americans (I wish I could find numbers specific to Kentucky. For the sake of this discussion, we'll assume the national average applies to Kentucky). However, since we know, from other discussions, that 4% make minimum wage, that means between 5% and 12% are getting a raise, but less than those making less. So basically, you've taken between 5% and 12% of Kentuckians and put them back on the bottom of the wage scale. Meanwhile, those making $8/hr aren't going to see a raise, and they'll be very close to the new bottom as well, where they were ahead by quite a bit.

I'll wrap this up with a link to more supporting analysis of minimum wage.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/09/AR2007010901812.html
Not surprisingly, WalMart supports minimum wage increases. Since it hurts smaller business the most, and smaller businesses are their primary competition, it won't be a big deal to them. And their goods are, for the most part, not made in this country.
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14) MININUM WAGE INCREASE [by KENTUCKYCOUNTRY on April 19, 2007]
A mininum wage increase will always help the lives of the people who need a pay wage increase hike the most , the lifes of the poor / low income / less fortunate / homeless.
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15) Please, don't do it. [by newmark on September 5, 2006]
We've been over this in another thread. Raising the minimum wage is both unnecessary, and damaging to the economy.

http://www.kentuckyvotes.org/Comment.aspx?ID=28885&ActionID=204651
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16) Who then will raise wages? [by Anonymous Citizen on September 6, 2006]
If not the government, via the minimum wage, who will raise wages? CEOs, business owners. Wal-Mart, which pays just over minimum wage just so they can say that they don't have minimum wage workers. There not going to do it. Hell, they still have to help their workers get government assistance to make ends meet.

A raise in minimum means a raise in wages just above minimum and so on.

Who in the hell are these evil people who would deny Americans a living wage?
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17) Minimum Wage not Career Wages [by Anonymous Citizen on April 15, 2007]
Minimum wage is for those jobs that are temporary or for a student while in school. It is not for the career minded bread winners of our country. Therefore there is no need to raise the minimum wage to keep up with the economy. Mommy and Daddy will take care of those needs.

I also realise that there ARE some folks that work minimum jobs as bread winners. Let's give them money to go to school so that they can land a job that pays enough. education is the true answer to poverty.

Peace to all. DJS
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18) ??? [by Anonymous Citizen on May 2, 2007]
What Jobs??????? Several decent paying jobs are leaving, automotive supply companies are down and laying off, and this IS Kentucky - not exactly a huge business hub in this country.

Some people that work minimum wage jobs as bread winners do so because that's all there is available at the time they need an income.

Yes, it's true that raising the minimum wage may increase other costs, but minimum wage has not changed in years and other costs already have even without a wage increase (IE. Gas, Milk, Utilities, etc). I feel that when the cost of living increases, minimum wage should also increase.
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19) Minimum Wage from a 23 years old female college student perspective [by Anonymous Citizen on April 26, 2007]
I am a college student and have worked for minimum wage many years. I can honestly say a raise would help me. If I get a two dollar raise at work. I highly doubt the gas prices will go up two dollars. There may be some gradual increase in prices, but not a majoy jump. Buisnesses are always increasing their prices anyway, so at least this way I will have a little more money in my pocket. I doubt my car payment will go up, my medical bills that I owe or my student loans. Much of the working poor has debts like those and a minimum wage increase could really help them with those type of monthly bills. Someone had previously said in the forum that minimum wage jobs are for those who are students or temp jobs. Well I dont know where you are from, but with only a high school degree, sometimes it can be hard to get a good job, especially in small towns with limited buisness, such as mine. If someone feels it is a bad idea to raise minimum wage, money is obviously not one of their main concerns.Lastly. mommy and daddy are not always the best people with money and it I would have finacially depended on my parents, I might not have made it that far.
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20) Minimum Wage for Dummies [by Anonymous Citizen on April 26, 2007]
I am a college student and have worked for minimum wage many years. I can honestly say a raise would help me. If I get a two dollar raise at work. I highly doubt the gas prices will go up two dollars. There may be some gradual increase in prices, but not a majoy jump. Buisnesses are always increasing their prices anyway, so at least this way I will have a little more money in my pocket. I doubt my car payment will go up, my medical bills that I owe or my student loans. Much of the working poor has debts like those and a minimum wage increase could really help them with those type of monthly bills. Someone had previously said in the forum that minimum wage jobs are for those who are students or temp jobs. Well I dont know where you are from, but with only a high school degree, sometimes it can be hard to get a good job, especially in small towns with limited buisness, such as mine. If someone feels it is a bad idea to raise minimum wage, money is obviously not one of their main concerns.Lastly. mommy and daddy are not always the best people with money and it I would have finacially depended on my parents, I might not have made it that far.
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