How a Minimum-Wage Increase Is Being Felt in a Low-Wage City
When wages went up, Ms. Parra said, she could more easily help pay for phone and cable bills at the apartment and share it with her mother, who was $ 18.50 at a heating and air-conditioning company Earns hourly.
However, she said that her wages were not enough for her to live on her own. He said, “I will not say that we are poor, but I also will not say that we are good.” “But because we both have income, we are able to recover”
Mayor Jerry Dyer said there were “mixed feelings, obviously,” about the rising minimum wage. “As the mayor of a city, it is important that there are people in our community who are making a living wage,” he said.
But Mr. Dyer, A republican, Said he also understands the pain that businesses may feel. “I’ve heard from businesses that if the minimum wage goes up too much, they can’t be competitive,” he said.
“That’s the challenge we face,” he said.
A prevalent question is whether $ 15 is enough.
In Fresno, this does not happen often. MIT’s Living Wage Calculator estimates A living wage in Fresno for a family of four is $ 22.52 per hour for working with both adults. In the past year, Fresno’s median rent rose 11 percent to $ 1,260 National Rent Report of Apartment List, Is one of the largest growth in the country.
For 40 hours a week, 26-year-old Jessica Ramirez earns $ 15.65 an hour at Amazon’s warehouse in Fresno. He is the primary breadwinner for himself, his partner and his five children, but even with food stamps and occasional work, he said, he barely has enough wages for him.
