Minimum Wage Bump One Step Closer To Happening In Colorado
DENVER (CBS4) - A ballot initiative to raise the minimum wage is one step closer to being on the November ballot in Colorado.
On Monday the group Colorado Families for a Fair Wage turned in 200,000 petition signatures. If the signatures are validated, the measure will appear on the ballot. If approved by voters, Colorado's minimum wage would gradually increase to $12 an hour by 2020.
The current state minimum wage is $8.31 an hour.
"The economy in Colorado is strong, but the cost of living has increased dramatically and wages just haven't kept up. So this measure is about gradually increasing the minimum wage from now until 2020 to $12 an hour so families who are struggling can really make ends meet," Patty Kupfer with Colorado Families for a Fair Wage said.
Marrisa Guerrero joined the group several years ago as she struggled to make ends meet. She said her wages have not kept up with the rise in the cost of living.
"I realized the only way I could stay afloat on my bills is working seven days a week," said Guerrero.
Tyler Sandberg heads the opposing campaign to the minimum wage increase called Keep Colorado Working. The group believes the increase would do more harm than good.
"While businesses in Boulder and Denver and Cherry Hills Village can probably afford a wage increase, small businesses in rural Colorado cannot," said Sandberg.
The group believes the increase would cost nearly 90,000 jobs.
"They operate in small profit margins so a 44 percent increase in their payroll is going to be devastating," said Sandberg.
The Secretary of State's Office will now verify the signatures. They need 98,000 valid signatures in order to get the initiative on the ballot.
