Chicago's minimum wage will bump from $8.25 to $10 on July 1, and then gradually increase to $13 in 2019, after the City Council on Tuesday passed an ordinance backed by Mayor Emanuel.
"We cannot allow ourselves to not increase the wage today, because too many people are relying upon it," said Ald. Emma Mitts (37th). "Now is the time to level the playing field. Now is the time for us to do what's right."
The ordinance passed at an emergency meeting Emanuel called last week to pre-empt Springfield legislation that was rumored to include language barring cities from raising their minimum wages above the state level.
Labor activists have been fighting for more than a year to get Chicago's minimum wage above the $8.25 statewide level. They argue that the minimum wage has not kept pace with inflation or the cost of living, while business interests say that a wage hike will make Chicago less competitive and increase job losses.
A working group assembled by City Hall considered the minimum wage issue over the summer and recommended the $13 level--higher than what businss interests would have liked, but lower than the $15 that labor activists were pursuing.
The ordinance will phase in the wage increase over the next few years, with an initial 21 percent bump to $10 in July. After hitting $13 in 2019, the minimum wage will be pegged to inflation.
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