The Maryland legislature overrode Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s veto Thursday to pass a $15 minimum wage law. The state is, the Washington Post reports, the first state below the Mason-Dixon line to pass such a law, and the sixth overall. It’s also the third state this year, which looks a little something like momentum—or the aftereffects of a blue wave.
Hogan’s veto was easily overridden, despite his attempt at a compromise of an ultimate minimum wage of $12.10 by 2022. The new law isn’t without its compromises, though: Tipped workers will still get a drastically lower minimum wage, and businesses with fewer than 15 employees will have until July 2026 to reach $15.
Around 573,000 Maryland workers will get a raise, according to the National Employment Law Project. Maryland follows California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York. And none of those states would have taken this step if fast-food workers hadn’t gotten out in front and organized and demanded something more than was considered politically realistic.
This blog was originally published at Daily Kos on March 28, 2019. Reprinted with permission.
