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It’s a rich (pardon the pun) irony that Governor Youngkin vetoed a bill that would have increased workers’ minimum wage from $12 per hour, far below what is needed just to meet basic necessities, to $15 per hour. The share of workers in Virginia’s rural areas making less than $12 per hour is twice as high as in Metropolitan areas, and women represent a high share of minimum wage jobs. And $12 is not enough – it takes $14.50 to $16.50 for an adult with no children to afford basic necessities in areas like Pittsylvania County or Accomac, and that number rises to $31-$34 with one child (WRIC). And what was the governor’s argument for not raising the minimum wage? He believes that “free market” forces should dictate wages. For Youngkin, his personal experience of a free market may well have been just fine. In 2020 when Youngkin led the powerful Carlyle Group private equity firm, he is reported to have received $8.5 million in cash and a $200 million stake in the company as tax-free shares (NBC). Well, it may take millions to recruit someone to run a hedge fund with revenues of $4 billion managing assets of $300 billion (Carlyle). And market-competitive wages are needed to recruit and retain skilled workers who can work in cybersecurity or cancer testing or nuclear power plants. But when it comes to lower wage jobs, unless you are fortunate enough to be represented by a union that negotiates compensation for you and your co-workers, you are on your own to take the pay offered or look elsewhere. Democrats who voted for this bill are aligned with the needs of lower wage workers, saying the increase is needed to help earn a living wage that provides for working families. Republicans are more concerned that it would hurt business profits and small rural businesses and farms. But the law that was vetoed did provide exemptions for those who work in family businesses, employees under 18, and full-time students. And there is no evidence that the last minimum wage raise hurt business and the economy. Republicans have consistently opposed raising the minimum wage, as have they stood against unions. These policies, together with allowing corporations to gobble up their competitors to raise prices, and enacting huge “trickle down” tax cuts for the wealthy, have resulted in a massive shift of wealth. An incredible $5 trillion has moved in the last four decades from 90% of Americans to the top 1% (Time). So yes, smooth sailing for folks like Glenn Youngkin, but a tough slog for so many working families.
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