Mo. voters to make decision on wage raise

Proposition B, which aims to raise the state minimum wage to $6.50, has been certified by Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan for the November ballot. An announcement was made by officials with the Give Missourians a Raise coalition at a press conference on Wednesday.

Ron Berry, coalition member and organizer for Pro-Vote, said approximately 120,000 Missourians earn less than $6.50 an hour. If the minimum wage is raised, he said, an estimated 256,000 people will receive a pay increase, the difference lying in those who currently earn more than $6.50 an hour but could also see a boost in pay. Berry said the raises would pump $21 million into the state economy.

The increase is necessary, Berry said, because the cost of living has increased significantly since 1997, when the current minimum wage, $5.15 per hour, was put into effect.

“These days, working for one hour (at minimum wage) will hardly pay for a couple gallons of gas,” he said.

But Kerri McBee, outreach director with the Missouri Budget Project, said the increase will have the greatest impact on women.

McBee, who is also the executive director of the Alliance for the Status of Missouri Women, said women are more likely than men to hold low-wage jobs. A large percentage of those women are single mothers. The money generated from the increase will be reflected by improvements in health care, education and other family services.

“We’re a critical population,” McBee said. “Women’s issues are family issues.”

The coalition also held press conferences in St. Louis, Kansas City and Springfield on Wednesday. To be considered for the ballot, the coalition compiled a petition with more than 200,000 signatures. Berry said the coalition will now focus on receiving support from several Missouri organizations.

“The average voter is supportive,” he said. “We’re reaching out to those who make the decisions.”