I am a high-school student in Everett. I may not live in Seattle, but I think that eventually the wage increase would affect areas outside of Seattle (not necessarily in a bad way, however). Now, I know that the potential minimum wage increase in Seattle is receiving, to say the least, mixed feelings. Personally, I think that a wage increase is a good idea, but it is being put into action in completely the wrong way. A wage increase would need to be enacted slowly, over time. You can’t just rush this sort of thing. Also, a $15 minimum wage is a bit extreme to start with. That would affect small businesses in a negative way.
My mother and grandmother used to own and operate a bead store together in Everett, called Beads on Broadway. If there had been an increase in minimum wage as massive (and sudden) as this proposed one for Seattle, then they wouldn’t have been able to afford to pay for any extra help. We ended up having to close the shop anyway, for other reasons, but that’s beside the point. I think that if the minimum wage is going to get increased to $15, it needs to be done slowly and carefully, to avoid any possible issues.
Ian Ramey
Marysville
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