A judge has ruled that a proposal to raise Minneapolis’ minimum wage to $15 an hour should go on the city’s ballot this fall.
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Minnesota Public Radio reported that Judge Susan Robiner issued her opinion Monday, which said that a proposed charter amendment to raise the city’s minimum wage to must be included on the November ballot.
Now five American cities and two states, NY and California, have plans to gradually raise minimum wage to $15 an hour. City Attorney Susan Segal argued the proposal is an ordinance disguised as a charter amendment. In a survey of some 400 registered Minneapolis voters, 68 percent said they are likely to vote “yes” if the wage hike appeared on the ballot.
The judge concurred and ordered the city to put the issue on the November 8 ballot.
“We believe that the District Court ruling in this matter is wrong and we urge the City to appeal”. The ruling creates an expansive and unsafe precedent and opens the door to initiative and referendum style governance in our City which is plainly not provided for by the Minneapolis Charter.
According to the Star Tribune, a charter amendment is the only type of action allowed to be put to a direct vote in Minneapolis. “One important reason is to address questions like minimum wage policy through their legislative process which permits input and careful deliberation on consequential policy matters”. The city attorney issued a legal opinion against it, and the city council declined to approve it for a citywide vote earlier this month. Only a handful of other cities, including Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles, have approved a $15 minimum wage. Currently, the state’s minimum wage is $9.50 per hour for large businesses and $7.75 per hour for small businesses and workers under the age of 18.
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Organizations supporter the $15 minimum wage proposal, including Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha, 15 Now Minnesota, and Neighborhoods Organizing for Change, immediately celebrated the decision.
