The Senate passed a bill on Friday that would raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2024. However, even if it makes it through the House, Gov. Phil Scott has indicated that he will not support the legislation as it is written.
Under bill S.40, Vermont’s current minimum hourly rate of $10.50 would be increased incrementally over six years.
“I think everybody acknowledges and everybody agrees that we have great problems with income inequality in this state and in this country,” Sen. Michael Sirotkin, D-Chittenden, said during a press conference after Friday’s vote.
“We feel that state government has a role to play and can set policies that can start to address in a meaningful way the issues of wage stagnation.”
The bill aims to raise the wages of tens of thousands of Vermonters. But opponents of the law, including the governor, say many workers will ultimately lose jobs as businesses look to offset higher salaries by reducing employees. They also say the bill will push businesses away from Vermont during a time when the state is desperate to grow its workforce.
Mark Avery, the operator of Lake Morey Resort in Fairlee, countered this narrative at the Statehouse press conference.
“I’m here today to say that we’re not adversely affected by this bill,” he said of his business. “I still question whether $15 an hour is enough to live life, but it’s certainly a start in the right direction.”
Gov. Phil Scott’s administration has said it supports the broad goal of increasing wages, it believes the minimum wage bill is a threat to Vermont’s economy.
“Based on the Legislature’s economists’ own analysis, (Scott) said we could anticipate job losses close to 3,000, positive effects would be ‘largely offset’ by higher prices and added costs,” Rebecca Kelley, the governor’s spokeswoman, said on Thursday.
“He’ll take a look at a final bill, but as it stands, there are a number of concerns to be addressed.”
Senate President Pro-Tem Tim Ashe, who has made raising the minimum wage a top priority this biennium, said in an interview on Friday that he was focused on the next task in the Statehouse, and not winning over the governor.
“I’m not thinking right now about whether the governor will prevent those people from getting their wages increased,” Ashe said. “Our first job is with the House and making sure that we reach an agreement before the end of the session.”
Sirotkin said it’s too early to know whether the bill will face hurdles in the House, but that he was cautiously optimistic given support from some House members for a bill proposed last year that would have raised the minimum wage to $15 by 2022.
“I know that a more aggressive bill than what we passed has over 50 sponsors in the House, so I would expect that they would give it careful consideration,” he said.
This year’s bill is most likely headed to the House General, Housing and Military Affairs Committee, according to its chairwoman, Rep. Helen Head, D-South Burlington.
Head s her committee is unlikely to start work on the bill until March at the earliest.