Employees in the first state are one step closer to making a minimum of $15 an hour. Senate Bill 15 passed the Delaware Senate Thursday, but not one senator in Sussex County voted for it.
LEWES/REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. – Employees in the first state are one step closer to making a minimum of $15 an hour. Senate Bill 15 passed the Delaware Senate Thursday, but not one senator in Sussex County voted for it.
The Delaware Department of Labor says 35,000 employees in Delaware are earning the state’s minimum wage of $9.25 an hour, which was set in 2019. Bill sponsors say that isn’t enough to keep up with the cost of living or for Delaware to stay competitive with the minimum wage in other states.
SB 15 would increase Delaware’s base hourly wage over four years:
$10.50 In 2022.
$11.75 In 2023.
$13.25 In 2024.
And $15.00 in 2025.
The Station on Kings manager Bella Leishear says the current wage rate isn’t enough for back of house employees, like dishwashers, who don’t get tips, but raising the rate comes at a cost to businesses.
“From a business owner perspective, I understand, it’s hard enough to be able to provide that for their employees and to keep their business running,” Leishear says.
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