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16-Cent Wage Hike is Not Enough for New Jersey’s Low-Paid Workers

Gradually increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour is urgently needed.

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Published on Sep 29, 2017 in Economic Justice

Today, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced that the state’s minimum wage would increase by 16 cents from $8.44 to $8.60 on January 1, 2018, providing a very modest boost to many of New Jersey’s low-paid workers.

While an increase in the minimum wage is a welcomed development, $8.60 an hour remains far below what it takes for a worker to afford the most basic of needs on a daily basis in high-cost New Jersey. Legislators were smart to tie minimum wage raises to increases in inflation so that minimum wage workers don’t fall even further behind, but the new hourly wage accounts to an inadequate income of less than $18,000 a year for a full-time worker.

It’s clearer than ever: gradually increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour is urgently needed to reduce income inequality and help hundreds of thousands of hard working New Jerseyans afford basic needs for themselves and their families. The sooner elected officials can recognize this need and work together to help our friends and neighbors who are struggling to get by on the current insufficient minimum wage level, the better of all of us – workers, families, and businesses – will be.

Author

  • Brandon McKoy, President, is the chief executive of NJPP and leads the organization's efforts in shaping policy debates to advance economic justice for the many, not a chosen few. Prior to being named President of NJPP in February 2019, Brandon served as NJPP's Director of Government and Public Affairs, where he designed and implemented the organization's outreach, advocacy, and government relations activities. He also produces timely, credible and accessible research and analysis on issues including, but not limited to, economic security, the social safety net and economic opportunity.

    Brandon’s research interests include: state tax policy, the minimum wage, paid sick leave, the earned income tax credit, urban planning and criminal justice.

    Before joining NJPP in August 2014 as a national fellow under the State Priorities Partnership’s and Center on Budget and Policy Priorities’ state policy fellowship program, Brandon worked as a Program Associate at The Fund for New Jersey, where he assisted in grantmaking on public policy issues that particularly affect low-income and minority populations in New Jersey. He also worked as an AmeriCorps VISTA at HANDS, Inc., a community development corporation in New Jersey, where he worked to mitigate the negative impact of foreclosures and increase citizen participation in local decision-making.

    Brandon formerly served as the Deputy Chapter Director of New Leaders Council – New Jersey and is an alumnus of the 2013 fellows class. He currently serves on the board of the New Jersey Work Environment Council, Shelterforce and the I Am Trenton Community Foundation. He received a MA in City & Regional Planning and Policy Development from Rutgers University’s Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy and holds a BS degree in Social Psychology from The College of New Jersey.

    Email: mckoy (at) njpp.org | Phone: 609-393-1145 ext. 14


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