The Bloomberg administration is releasing a controversial report this morning that shows a mandated wage increase would kill jobs – a jab at a growing coalition trying to pass a bill requiring a pay increase in the city.
The study projects that between 6,000 and 13,000 “low-skilled jobs” would be lost if the City Council were to pass a bill requiring an hourly wage increase for companies receiving at least $1 million in city subsidies. Most jobs would be lost in the outer boroughs.
Bloomberg is squarely against the bill, which would require a base wage of $10 an hour plus benefits, or $11.50 an hour, for employees whose companies received at least $1 million in city subsidies. Many projects would be automatically exempt, such as manufacturing companies and non-profits.
Minimum wage is $7.25 an hour.
The report, authored by consulting firm Charles River Associates, estimates the bill would discourage retail development, with about 33 percent of projects in the outer boroughs and 24 percent in Manhattan unlikely to move forward if the Council were to enact the legislation.
The study does acknowledge that the bill would result in an hourly earnings increase of $1.66 for 34,000 to 62,000 workers.
Still, it gives Council Speaker Christine Quinn a rationale to shelve the contentious legislation as she tries to lure the small business community in preparation of a likely run for mayor in 2013. Her spokesman, Jamie McShane, would only say she will review the study.
“This is a desperate attempt to derail much-needed living wage legislation that many thousands of New Yorkers are urging the City Council to pass,” said Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. “What the mayor should really study is his own failure to rebuild the middle class and reduce inequality.”
Bloomberg spokeswoman Julie Wood said the “shows clearly that while wage mandates may raise income for a few, they also result in significant job losses and reduced private investment for many.
“The administration is working to make it easier to create jobs in New York City, not harder.”