JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.– Some lawmakers are working to remove an increase in the state’s minimum wage. in 2018, Missouri voters approved Prop B and raising the minimum wage to $12 by 2023.
A bill being heard in the state capitol Tuesday night would take away the state’s increase and would tie Missouri’s minimum wage to the federal minimum wage. That wage is currently three dollars less an hour.
Before tonight’s hearing, service workers and small business owners held a virtual rally against the bill. They said it will hurt all Missourians.
“Lawmakers might think they are trying to help small businesses like mine with this proposal but they are dead wrong. Low wages just don’t harm workers, they hurt businesses and are a drag on the whole economy,” said Howard Hanna, a small business owner.
A man who works at a fast food restaurant also took part in the rally to voice his concerns.
“I get about 40 percent less on the food stamps, the EBT card, then I did eight years ago and that’s because I’ve seen a lift in my wages and my fiancés wages,” said Terrence Wise, a McDonald’s employee.
Prop B passed with 63% of the vote in 2018.
