Pennsylvania governor says stifling minimum wage ‘bad for business’

(The Center Square) – Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said Thursday stifling employee earnings to increase profits “is simply not good business.”

Wolf’s comments came during a 40-minute new conference previewing his budget priorities. The governor said he wanted the Legislature to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $12 immediately, with a 50 cent increase each year until the state reaches $15 in 2026.

The last time Pennsylvania raised its minimum wage was in 2009, after the federal government mandated it. One million workers would see an instant raise under the proposal, generating an additional $300 million in state tax revenue in 2026. The administration estimates raising the wage would also reduce the number of residents using Medicaid and other forms of public assistance.

“Business trying to get by keeping compensation to their workers low is simply not good business,” Wolf said.

This belief, he said, came from years of managing Wolf Home Products, a construction supply company in York County. Wolf said the industry is notorious for paying minimum wage – or less – though he maintains the strategy would cost more in the long run.

“If you don’t pay your workers a wage that allows them to build a family and have a good career, you’re not going to get the best results from your workers,” he said. “You’re going to have a high turnover rate and a high training cost and that ultimately may cost you more than it would to be fair to your workers in terms of giving them a living wage.”

The proposal, while popular among the Legislature’s Democratic members, will likely fall flat for its Republican majorities. GOP leaders in the House and Senate both panned Wolf for ignoring vaccine distribution, but mentioned nothing of his other priorities.

“Otherwise, this announcement was as disappointing as it was unsurprising,” said House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff, R-Bellefonte. “Gov. Wolf outlined the continuation of his tax and spend pattern of picking winners and losers and targeting Pennsylvania growth industries.”

“Governor Wolf must focus on the immediate issues at hand,” said Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, R-Greensburg. “Getting our vulnerable population vaccinated and economy back up and running.”

Wolf is expected to release more details about his spending plan during his Feb. 2 budget address. Any action at the federal level to raise the minimum wage would make his own proposal moot, he said.

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