Annapolis, MD – Before Gov. Wes Moore went and testified before the Maryland House of Economic Matters Committee at 1 p.m. on Feb. 27, he met with business leaders and an employee, Antonia Brown, to hear about the importance of passing the Fair Wage Act (HB549).

The Fair Wage Act (HB549) would help to speed up the state of reaching the $15 minimum wage point by Oct. 1, 2023. Currently, the state has a yearly increase of the minimum, which would ultimately reach a $15 minimum wage in 2025. It is now $13.25.

Ricarra Jones – political director of the SEIU1199, an organization that represents healthcare workers in Maryland –  said the bill  “would put a couple more dollars in an employee’s paycheck at the end of the week.” 

“They can purchase more food for their kids, pay for transportation, or not have to worry if they can pay their rent,” she explained.

“I am glad this governor has made it a priority,” Jones said. 

The meeting was held at the Annapolis Statehouse, on Feb. 27 at 12 p.m. Other attendees included: Carmalita Marshall, funeral director and embalmer at March Funeral Homes, Michael Lastoria, founder and CEO of &Pizza, Gina Schaefer, owner of a Few Cool Hardware Stores, Aaron Seyedian, owner of Well-Paid Maids, Jenny Kraska, executive director of Maryland Catholic Conference, Comptroller Brooke Lierman, Maryland Department of Labor Acting Secretary Portia Wu, and Maryland Department of Commerce Acting Secretary Kevin A. Anderson.

Seyedian, who has businesses in Montgomery and Prince George’s County, pays his employees $22 per hour. Paying employees and potential employees this amount, Seyedian said, allows his company to recruit more easily, mitigates turnover, and  “is simply the right thing to do.” 

“A big part of what were are doing, even in cleaning, which is, traditionally, an exploitative industry, is to show that we…can do it in a pro-worker way and that you run a viable and successful business,” he said. 

Due to the fact that his company pays $22 per hour, Seyedian said potential employees sometimes disbelieve that this is the pay, while also offering benefits. 

“I think this speaks a little bit to our pay and benefits, but also to how frequently job seekers get burned by things that sound too good to be true,” he said. “For example, there are a lot of firms that operate with misclassified 1099s. A job posting might say, ‘ This job pays $25 an hour.’ But actually, it is as a contractor [position]. So the employee is not getting taxes taken out, they're going to get a big bill at the end of the year, and they don’t have access to unemployment insurance or workers' compensation if they hurt themselves. So people don’t find that they have gotten a raw deal until around tax time. It’s dodgy out there.” 

Moore’s push for the $15 minimum wage is a part of his initiative to build a more inclusive economy, incentivize work, and address adult and child poverty. Moore wants the state of Maryland to be more competitive.

“I think we have a chance to do something special,” said the governor. “There is no reason on earth for the state of Maryland to be 35th in unemployment. There is no reason for Maryland - the STATE of Maryland - to be the 43rd toughest place in the country to start a business. There is no reason for the state of Maryland to be falling behind the national economy. We need more people engaged and involved in the economy – and this bill is a huge step in order for us to do exactly that.” 

According to Maryland Center For Economic Policy, the new bill would benefit roughly 126,000 children and increase wages for about 175,000 workers. 

“One of the most crucial elements of Gov. Moore’s Fair Wage Act is the provision to protect the purchasing power of the minimum wage in the long run,” according to MCEP. “As has become all too clear in recent years, price increases can eat away at wage gains, especially when a perfect storm of global crises accelerates inflation.”

Comptroller Brooke Lierman moved the conversation forward when she talked about the importance of indexing the minimum wage to make sure it tracks with inflation. Lierman said indexing the minimum sounded like common sense policy. 

If the bill is passed, Maryland will join other states, including DC, with indexing the minimum wage.  Lastoria, founder of &Pizza, said there is this myth that indexing would be bad for businesses. But he said this hasn’t been true for his business and others. Seyedia agreed.

“The idea that every year or every few years, you have a certain cost that is going to go up by a certain increment, based upon a formula, is a normal part of owning a business,” said Seyedian. “We are used to paying for things this way. We are used to budgeting this way. It’s marginal. It is so much less important than the question of, like, do I have more customers this year versus if the unit price of a wage is going to go up by a certain number of percentage points.” 

Yesterday, Maryland Matters reported that there may have been some committee members concerned about indexing. 

“Indexing is a tough issue that I don’t think the committee is overly supportive at the moment, and so I know there are ongoing conversations,” Ferguson told Maryland Matters, prior to the hearing of the bill before the House Economic Matters Committee. “If you look across the country where indexing is in place, almost all of those have happened as a result of a ballot initiative. There are very few places where indexing is in place because of, as part of, a legislative initiative. I would say this will be the third time that we will have touched minimum wage in 12 years, and so it makes sense to me that we are back every year for a reason.”

Closing the meeting, Moore, prophesying, said, “I am going to be very excited to see each one of you at the signing.” Then, he and others departed to testify before the Economic Matters Committee. Now, the waiting has begun.

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