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$15 an hour minimum wage amendment will be on Florida’s 2020 ballot

The Florida Supreme Court just signed off on it.
Credit: AP

TALLAHASSEE, Fla — It wouldn’t happen all at once, but Florida’s minimum wage could soon be heading toward $15 per hour if 60 percent of Florida voters say yes.

The state’s Supreme Court just decided the Raising Florida’s Minimum Wage amendment meets all the necessary legal requirements to be included on the 2020 ballot.

The amendment would mandate a $10 minimum wage by Sep. 30, 2021, and require one dollar increases each September through 2026. After that, the amendment calls for the minimum wage to be adjusted each year for inflation like it is now.

The advocacy group Fair Wage Florida is behind the amendment.

“I’m confident because Floridians are compassionate and know that giving every worker a fair wage means not just lifting up those who would directly benefit, but lifting up our broader economy when hardworking folks have more money to spend,” said the group's sponsoring committee chairman and prominent attorney John Morgan.

Morgan was also the driving force behind the 2016 amendment that legalized medical marijuana in Florida.

Some business owners have argued that forcing a large pay raise will hurt the state’s economy.

In a letter to the Miami Herald, the President and CEO of the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association wrote:

Business owners will be forced to find solutions to control costs, and these solutions will have a direct impact on Florida’s 1.4 million hospitality workers. Solutions include reducing the number of employees and the hours that remaining employees work and seeking labor alternatives like automation.

RELATED: Effort to raise Florida minimum wage to $15 passes signature hurdle

RELATED: Study: Florida ranks as one of the worst paying states in the country

RELATED: Underemployment explained: Almost half of American workers have 'low-wage' jobs

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