The activist group Vote 15 Now has submitted a petition to City Council asking that it put a measure on the ballot next election day that would place a mandated $15 minimum wage within the city's charter. Below is the specific language of the petition:
1. Amend Charter Article IV, City Council, § 4.1, Function, by adding a new paragraph (g), Minimum Wage, which shall read as follows:
(g) Minimum Wage. The City of Minneapolis is dedicated to improving its residents’ quality of life. Income inequality, low wages, and a high cost of living relative to other parts of the state are serious economic and social problems facing the City. Many City residents work long hours but cannot afford housing, food, medical care, and other basic necessities. The City has an interest in promoting the health, safety, and welfare of workers, their families, and their communities by ensuring they can support themselves through work. When workers in the City earn decent wages, such wages can also boost the local economy. Therefore, the City chooses to establish a minimum wage to better enable workers to afford the minimum necessities. This minimum wage will be phased in gradually.
(1) Definitions. Terms used in this section 4.1(g) have the same meaning as in the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act except as modified herein.
(A) For the purposes of subsection (2) of this section 4.1(g), the number of employees employed by an employer includes the total number of employees (full-time or part-time) working for the employer anywhere in the United States, including, in the case where the employer is a franchisee, all employees employed by other franchisees of the same franchisor.
(B) “Cost of living” shall be measured by the percentage increase, if any, of the non-seasonally adjusted consumer price index (Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, U.S. City Average for all items) or its successor index as published by the U.S. Department of Labor or its successor agency, for the most recent 12-month period for which data is available at the time the cost of living adjustment is calculated.
(2) Minimum Wage.
(A) Employers with 500 or more employees shall pay each employee expected to work 25 or more hours in a calendar year within the geographic boundaries of the City for each hour worked within the geographic boundaries of the City an hourly minimum wage of no less than:
(I) Starting August 1, 2017: $10.00,
(II) Starting August 1, 2018: $11.75,
(III) Starting August 1, 2019: $13.50,
(IV) Starting August 1, 2020: $15.00,
(V) Starting August 1, 2021, and each August 1 thereafter, the hourly minimum wage shall be adjusted to keep pace with the rising cost of living.
(B) Employers with fewer than 500 employees shall pay each employee expected to work 25 or more hours in a calendar year within the geographic boundaries of the City for each hour worked within the geographic boundaries of the City an hourly minimum wage of no less than:
(I) Starting August 1, 2017: $10.00,
(II) Starting August 1, 2018: $11.00,
(III) Starting August 1, 2019: $12.00,
(IV) Starting August 1, 2020: $13.00,
(V) Starting August 1, 2021, $14.00,
(VI) Starting August 1, 2022: $15.00,
(VII) Starting August 1, 2023, and each August 1 thereafter, the hourly minimum wage will not be less than the minimum wage set by subsection (2)(A)(V) of this section 4.1(g).
(C) Gratuities not applied. No employer may directly or indirectly credit, apply, or utilize gratuities towards payment of the minimum wage set by this section 4.1(g).
(D) Sharing of gratuities. The Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act will govern the sharing of gratuities under this section 4.1(g).
(3) Interpretation. Nothing in this charter shall discourage or prohibit ordinances, rules, or policies providing for higher or supplemental wages or benefits or extending such protections to persons not covered by this section 4.1(g). Case law and standards developed under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act shall guide the construction of this section 4.1(g) and any implementing ordinances or rules.
(4) Enforcement. The City shall enforce this section 4.1(g) and any implementing ordinances or rules. Where an employee or person has been paid less than the hourly minimum wage required under this section 4.1(g), or been subject to any other violation of their rights under this section 4.1(g) or implementing ordinances or rules, including, but not limited to, retaliation for asserting or attempting to assert their rights, the employee or person may bring an administrative complaint with the City, or the employee, person, or City may bring a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction, and, upon prevailing in either proceeding, shall be awarded the full amount of any back wages unlawfully withheld and an additional two times that amount as damages together with reasonable attorney’s fees and costs, as well as interest on all amounts due and unpaid, and may be awarded an administrative penalty and any additional appropriate legal or equitable relief. Implementing legislation is not required to enforce this section 4.1(g). The City shall enact penalties designed to effectively deter violations of this section 4.1(g), including, but not limited to, penalties that will increase for repeat offenses and will deter employers from engaging in any form of retaliation against persons asserting or attempting to assert rights under this section 4.1(g).
(5) Public Outreach and Education. The City shall implement multilingual and culturally-specific outreach and education programs, including collaboration with and grants to community organizations, to educate employees regarding rights under this section 4.1(g) and any implementing ordinances or rules, or to provide assistance or support to employees or the City in filing and resolving complaints or pursuing other enforcement actions.
(6) Severability. If any portion of this section 4.1(g) is held invalid, in whole or in part, or in its application, by a court of competent jurisdiction, such portion or application shall be severable, and such invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions or applications of this section 4.1(g).
