Steve Burns
WMAL.com
ROCKVILLE – (WMAL) Ahead of what will likely be a contentious debate, a three-member subcommittee of the Montgomery County Council voted Monday to delay implementation of a $15 minimum wage in the county by two years, including an extra two years for small businesses, now defined as employing 50 or fewer people, up from 25.
The previous version, with a timeline of 2020 for most businesses and 2022 for businesses with 25 or fewer employees, was vetoed by County Executive Ike Leggett earlier this year. He indicated businesses would need more time to adjust if they were to avoid a serious impact in the form of reduced benefits or layoffs. Leggett recommended the timeline changes in a memo last month.
County Council President Roger Berliner said he is proud that Montgomery County would be the first suburban jurisdiction in the country to offer a $15 minimum wage, but said it needs to be done differently from cities that have done the same.
“Getting the pace right, is, and has always been, the debate,” Berliner said in proposing the timeline extension. “There is enough indication to submit that if we do this too quickly, small businesses will be left with no recourse other than to reduce hours, reduce benefits, lay off people.”
It is still unclear whether the full council will support the new timeline. Before the timeline adjustment, other minor changes had been made in the hopes of winning over enough other councilmembers to form a veto-proof majority over Leggett. Those changes including adding non-profits and home health services to the list of businesses that can wait an extra two years.
Leggett on Monday said he was glad to hear of the committee vote, but still expressed skepticism that the full council will agree to the change.
“If, for some reason, they go a different direction, then I’m prepared to veto it again,” he told WMAL. “I’d much rather do it slower, make some exceptions, and provide a more competitive position for our county as we transition, and hopefully the full council may come along.”
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