Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

DC Minimum Wage Increases

FILE PHOTO: MALLIKA SEN/THE HOYA Mayor Vincent Gray signed the minimum wage increase bill into law in January.

The minimum wage in the District of Columbia rose from $8.25 to $9.50 today, the first in a series of rate hikes leading to a minimum wage of $11.50 by 2016.

Mayor Vincent Gray affixed his signature to the Minimum Wage Amendment Act of 2013 this January, after the D.C. Council passed the bill unanimously. In a statement on the Executive Office of the Mayor’s website, Gray explained the reasoning behind the law. “

I am proud of the role we played in bringing this minimum-wage increase about, because it will enable all District workers to earn a decent living as well as boost average family incomes,” Gray said. “I am also confident that this measure will help stimulate economic growth in our city, as more money in families’ pockets will allow our residents to spend more money on goods and services.”

In anticipation of the increase, the university began integrating the projected wage hikes into departmental budgets so as to not detrimentally impact on-campus student employment. Many student positions paid below the new minimum wage line, including summer positions. Summer Residence Hall Office employees, for example, started with an $8.25 hourly rate. The university will adjust wages accordingly.

“Departments have worked to incorporate these changes into their departmental budgets. Students who were making less than $9.50 an hour before July 1 will see their wages increase effective July 1,” Director of Media Relations Rachel Pugh wrote in an email.

The law, which is estimated to affect 40,000 workers in the District, stipulates an annual increase of one dollar, concluding on July 1, 2016. Following the establishment of the $11.50 rate, the minimum wage will inflate every July 1 per the annual average increase in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers in the Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area.

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