King County Council considers increasing minimum wage to more than $20 an hour

KING COUNTY, Wash. — Some workers could be in for a pay raise if they are currently earning the minimum wage in unincorporated King County. However, the vote initially scheduled for Tuesday afternoon was delayed a week.

The current minimum wage in Washington state is $16.28 per hour. King County could adopt a stepped increase for minimum wages, starting at $20.29 for businesses with 500 or more employees. Lower increases would be mandated for medium-sized and smaller businesses, depending on the outcome of the vote.

If adopted, King County would join Seattle, Tukwila, SeaTac, Renton, Burien, and other cities in setting its minimum wage that goes beyond the amount set by state law. Seattle’s minimum wage is currently $19.97 per hour.

However, near the start of Tuesday's King County Council meeting, Council Chair Dave Upthegrove announced a one-week courtesy delay would be granted. Upthegrove called the delay a "fairly routine part of our process."

ALSO SEE | Seattle City Council debates reducing pay requirements for app-based delivery drivers

Sponsors of the legislation being considered by the King County Council point to regional differences in minimum wage standards, which add up to arbitrary differences in pay depending on what neighborhood a worker’s job is located.

The proposed minimum wage legislation also includes annual increases to keep pace with inflation.

If enacted, the $20.29 minimum wage would only apply to King County’s largest businesses as the legislation contains significant exceptions. The highest minimum wage level would initially only apply to businesses with more than 500 employees. That includes large, national chain stores as well as franchises, such as fast-food restaurants.

Exceptions would be made for businesses with between 15 and 500 employees, and their minimum wage would be set at $18.29 per hour. A similar reduction would be in place for businesses with fewer than 15 employees and less than $2 million in gross revenue, which would pay $17.29 per hour.

Under the legislation, these differences would be gradually phased out until all businesses have the same minimum wage in 2030.

According to the King County Council agenda packet, there are about 4,100 businesses in unincorporated King County that would be affected. The data was compiled from the Puget Sound Regional Council and other sources.