To: City of Parker, Co and Douglas County, Co
MInimum wage increase
Douglas County, including the City of Parker, are within the top 10 income places to live within the nation--on a par with Washington DC for example. To still pay our service industry employees a minimum wage of $7.25 or less is despicable, and has little to do with profit. Face it, it is expensive to live here in order to service this area. For an average of 12 cents per average purchase the necessary wage increases could be more than covered. I propose to encourage raising our minimum wages by offering local employers a choice--fees for permits can remain the same or increase for those who refuse to make an adjustment for their employees. Ether way the increased revenue to local municipalities (ie: sales tax revenues, or fee increases) will benefit those municipalities for their public works. Think about it--12 cents more for your $5.00 craft beer at the local pub. 12 cents more on your $15.00 lunch. We can afford it.
Why is this important?
Minimum wage has been frozen for decades. Instead of $7.25 per hour, $11.00 per hour is more appropriate. If 5.2% of our working population is at or below minimum wage, this would be a win, win, for everyone--even those who are paying more for their minimum wage employees would see an increase in their sales volumes, and the country would see an increase in tax revenues available for public works. I propose the change start on the local level--by the city and by the county. Incentives for local employers to pay more could be encouraged by local cities, for example, stating there will be an increase for business license fees, or perhaps, building permits and others except for those employers who are willing to increase their minimum wage employees to $11.00 per hour. It would be good PR for the big box stores within the city to lead the charge.