Paul Sassone

It’s ironic that Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto of a minimum wage increase took place so close to Labor Day.

Condemning millions of Illinois workers to continuing servile wages seems a poor way to honor those who labor.

The bill the governor vetoed would have raised the Illinois minimum wage through steps to $15 an hour by 2022. The first increase would have been to $9 an hour in January. Only California and New York have a $15 minimum wage.

In vetoing the increase, Rauner contended that a hike in the minimum wage actually would hurt low-wage earners. He cited a University of Washington study that stated increasing the minimum wage leads to businesses laying off workers, reducing workers hours and delaying hiring.

Supporters of upping the minimum wage criticize that study’s methodology and claim other studies show no such dire consequences.

Which side is right?

I am not qualified to judge.

But who is not given the consideration they deserve are the Illinoisans who work at minimum-wage levels. What is the effect of the veto on them, on the daily lives of wage earners and their families?

The minimum-wage hike would have increased the pay of 23 million Illinois workers.

Illinois minimum wage is $8.25 an hour, or approximately $17,160 a year. The U.S. Census Bureau puts the poverty threshold for a family of four at $24,257.

The governor’s veto is a boon to those theoretical workers who won’t have their hours cut or be laid off.

But to millions of actual Illinois workers, the governor’s veto is a sentence of pauperdom.

–Governor’s veto is a sentence of pauperdom–