Press Release
For Immediate Release
Contact: Nicole Vallestero Keenan
nicole@pugetsoundsage.org
New Study: $15 Minimum Wage - Single Best Option to Reduce Seattle's Gender and Race Pay Gap
Seattle - A new study by Puget Sound Sage concludes that a $15 minimum wage would create large scale benefits for women and people of color in Seattle, and effectively narrow our city's gender and race pay gaps. In a policy brief released today, Puget Sound Sage examines the potential outcomes of a $15 minimum wage on the local economy, assesses outcomes by industry sector, and demonstrates that a $15 minimum wage (with a phase-in only approach) is the single best option to reduce Seattle's gender and race pay gap.
Key findings from the policy brief include:
•$526 million dollars will be added to the paychecks of Seattle’s lowest wage workers: a wage increase that is significant for low-income families trying to make ends meet, but represents only 1.7% of Seattle employers’ total payroll costs.
•This infusion of new earnings will result in worker spending and re-spending, creating a total ripple effect of $625 million dollars to the regional economy.
• Women or and people of color living in Seattle currently earn between 44% and 71% of what white men earn.
•The over-representation of women and people of color in low-wage industries, such as food services, likely explains much of this pay gap.
•Raising the minimum wage is the fastest and most targeted policy option to narrow the gender and race pay gap.
The brief concludes that well-crafted, phased-in increase in the minimum wage can support a thriving economy.
You can find the full report on our website www.pugetsoundsage.org.
http://www.pugetsoundsage.org/downloads/Economic%20and%20Equity%20Outcomes%20of%20a%20$15%20Minimum%20Wage%20in%20Seattle_1.pdf
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