Support builds around new push to raise minimum wage

May 13—St. Joseph residents could see a new measure on the August or November ballot that would hike the state's minimum wage by nearly $3 over the next couple of years.

If approved by voters, the measure would raise Missouri's minimum wage from $12.30 to $13.75 by January 2025, and again to $15 by 2026.

The campaign pushing to get the measure on the ballot, Missourians for Healthy Families and Fair Wages, collected around 210,000 signatures, nearly double the amount needed to get the measure on the ballot.

Martin Stout is one of many St. Joseph residents who voiced his support for the measure, which he hopes will help many residents who struggle living paycheck to paycheck.

"It's tough to support yourself. You got kids and you're getting minimum wage. If you make it, if you're barely making it," Stout said. "You're going to end up calling this 'St. Homeless.' You know, if they don't figure it out."

As much as he supports the measure to help individuals and families, he's wary about increases in prices that could come with a minimum wage boost.

"People have to have more money to live, you know, But if the wages go up and everything goes up with the wages, nothing's happening," he said.

Currently, Missouri's minimum wage is higher than in 33 other states. The latest ballot measure is the second push to raise minimum wage in Missouri in the last 10 years. In 2018, voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition B, a measure that raised the minimum wage over a five-year period from $7.85 to $12.

With enough signatures collected for another minimum wage proposal this fall, the measure now awaits verification from the secretary of state's office.

The push to raise the minimum wage gradually to $15 in Missouri aligns with a nationwide political movement that has grown in recent years, called Fight for 15.

Local resident Charlotte Thomsen thinks a minimum wage increase would go a long way for young workers attempting to build savings and prepare for life on their own.

"Kids need more than what they're getting, they really do," she said. "It's tough to start saving money for college. That should hopefully help them out there."

Across the country, 28 states have raised minimum wage since 2014. The federal minimum wage has remained stagnant at $7.25 since 2009.

According to the Economic Policy Institute, seven states have no minimum-wage law or a minimum wage below the federal minimum wage. Those states include Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Wyoming.

Along with the minimum wage hike, the measure also seeks to establish standards for paid sick leave. Under the proposal, employees would accumulate one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked.