The latest victory in the fight to raise the wage occurred last night when Mountain View became the first city in Santa Clara County to increase its minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2018. The vote was 5-2 with Mayor John McAlister and Councilmember John Inks opposing the ordinance.
The City Council agreed to raise the City’s minimum wage in phases to reach the $15 mark. The current wage is set at $10.30 per hour, but will rise to $11 an hour in January of 2016, $13 an hour in January of 2017 and $15 an hour in January of 2018. After reaching $15, the minimum wage will be tied to the Bay Area’s Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Additionally, there are no exemptions for certain classes of workers, such as tipped employees or teenagers, thus ensuring that the wage increases apply to all workers, not a select few.
As expected, the Council Chambers were packed with community members and local leaders expressing their support for raising the minimum wage. Yesterday’s vote is another win for Silicon Valley Rising, a campaign launched by the South Bay Labor Council and Working Partnerships, USA to improve the working conditions of South Bay families.
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