DOUG LATTUCA: CURRENTLY, MINIMUM WAGE FOR WORKERS IN MOST AREAS OF NEW YORK STATE IS $13.20 PER HOUR. ACCORDING TO THE STATE LABOR DEPRTMENT, THAT $13.20 IS GETTING BUMPED UP TO $14.20 – A FULL DOLLAR INCREASE STARTING ON DECEMBER 31st. THIS INCREASE IS FOR WORKERS OUTSIDE THE NEW YORK CITY, WESTCHESTER COUNTY, AND LONG ISLAND AREAS…SO RIGHT HERE IN SYRACUSE IS DIRECTLY AFFECTED. THE PAY BUMP MEANS A FULL-TIME MINIMUM WAGE WORKER CAN MAKE AN EXTRA $40 A WEEK. WITH INFLATION AT ITS HIGHEST IN DECADES AROUND THE COUNTRY, PRICES EVERYWHERE ARE UP. DESPITE THE PAY HIKE, CONCERN IS DOWN FOR ONE SYRACUSE BUSINESS OWNER.
JOHN VAVALO: IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IF EVERY WAGE GOES UP A DOLLAR, THAT’S A LOT OF DOLLARS OUT THERE, VAVALO SAID. MAYBE IT WILL COME BACK, AND THEY’LL SPEND MORE. I MEAN, SO IT MIGHT BE OKAY.
LATTUCA: SOME BUSINESSES COULD STRUGGLE WITH THIS INCREASE, SO WHAT CAN BE DONE TO BRUNT THE BLOW OF THIS CHANGE?
VAVALO: WELL, THEY COULD DO A NUMBER OF THINGS. THEY COULD CUT THE HOURS DOWN OR THEY COULD RAISE THEIR PRICES A LITTLE BIT TO OFFSET THE COST. I WOULD THINK THAT EACH BUSINESS HAS THEIR OWN LITTLE WAY OF DOING IT. IF YOU START SINKING YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING, YOU KNOW?
LATTUCA: TO SOME MINIMUM WAGE EMPLOYEES, THE EXTRA DOLLAR PER HOUR CAME AS A SURPRISE.
ROBERT MUNCH: OH, I DIDN’T ACTUALLY KNOW THERE WAS AN INCREASE. NO, THAT’S GOING TO BE GREAT. I FEEL LIKE MINIMUM WAGE WORKERS ARE OFTEN FORGOTTEN ABOUT AND WE’RE DOING THE JOBS THAT PEOPLE DON’T WANT TO DO, SO THAT’S GREAT ACTUALLY, THAT THERE’S AN INCREASE.
LATTUCA: NOW, IF YOU’RE A FAST-FOOD WORKER, THIS DOESN’T AFFECT YOU AS YOU ALREADY MAKE AT LEAST $15 AN HOUR – SAME FOR WORKERS WHO RECEIVE TIPS.MINIMUM WAGE HAS INCREASED OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS UP FROM JUST $7.25 AN HOUR. MORE INCREASES ARE EXPECTED IN THE NEAR FUTURE. REPORTING FROM INSIDE THE STUDIO, DOUG LATTUCA, N-C-C NEWS.
Syracuse, N.Y. (NCC News) – If you’re a minimum wage worker in New York State, the end of 2022 can’t come fast enough. Starting on Dec. 31, 2022, the minimum wage in New York state is set to go up by a full dollar from $13.20 to $14.20, according to the State Labor Department.
This increase is for workers outside the New York City, Westchester County and Long Island areas, so Syracuse is directly affected.
The pay bump means a full-time minimum wage worker can make an extra $40 a week. Despite the pay hike, John Vavalo, the owner of J Michael Shoes in Syracuse, took a positive outlook.
“If you think about it, if every wage goes up a dollar, that’s a lot of dollars out there,” Vavalo said. “Maybe it will come back, and they’ll spend more. I mean, so it might be okay.”
Vavalo acknowledged that other businesses could suffer.
“Well, they could do a number of things,” Vavalo said. “They could cut the hours down or they could raise their prices a little bit to offset the cost. I would think that each business has their own little way of doing it. If you start sinking you have to do something, you know?”
Robert Munch, a minimum wage worker in the Syracuse area, was surprised to hear the news of the wage increase.
“Oh, I didn’t actually know there was an increase,” Munch said. “No, that’s going to be great. I feel like minimum wage workers are often forgotten about and we’re doing the jobs that people don’t want to do, so that’s great actually, that there’s an increase.”
This increase doesn’t affect fast-food workers who already make $15 per hour, nor does it impact workers who receive tips.
Minimum wage increased by $.70 last year, and has gone up little-by-little over the last ten years. A decade ago, the minimum wage price was just $7.25.
More increases are expected in the near future as the state tries to get everyone’s wages up to $15 an hour.
