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1. How many Living Wage ordinances are there in the U.S.? Would Oak Park be one of the first? More than 200 governmental units have passed living wage ordinances; most of these are cities and towns but there have been living wage ordinances passed by counties, airports and other governmental units. This means that there is a lot of actual experience with living wage ordinances that Oak Park can draw upon to determine the likely impact of such an ordinance. |
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2. What workers would be covered by the Living Wage ordinance? The ordinance applies to three groups of workers: those employed by the Village, those who work for firms on work beyond $25,000 contracted out by the Village, and those who work for firms that have received substantial (over $50,000) subsidies from the Village. |
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3. Do living wage ordinances raise the cost of services to taxpayers? That has not been the experience of cities that have implemented a living wage ordinance. In some cases the costs have actually declined and in no cases have the increases in costs been significant to individual taxpayers. |
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4. Are there benefits from passing a living wage beyond the increased pay to some workers? There are at least three important benefits. First, since contractors seeking business from the Village can no longer compete by paying less than the living wage level, the competition focuses on the quality of the work performed. Second, living wage workers will have more to spend for food, clothing, and other needs. Some of that will be spent in the Village. Third, Oak Park will join other communities in establishing the principle that no one should have to work for wages that that are inadequate to support basic human needs. |
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5. Will it cost the Village to enforce a living wage ordinance? No, living wage, like minimum wage and prevailing wage requirements would be written into contracts executed with the Village. Most employers will abide by a living wage ordinance just as they do for minimum wage ordinances. Any violations would be reported by employees of the contractor rather than by inspectors. |
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6. Can Oak Park afford a living wage ordinance in the midst of the Great Recession, when we are laying off other employees? All existing Villager employees are already paid at or above the living wage so there is no impact on the Village wage bill. Some contractors handling outsourced work may have to increase wage levels for their low wage employees. However, as noted above, the experience of other cities and municipalities with living wage ordinances has been little or no increase in the cost to taxpayers. |
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7. If taxpayers don't end up paying more with living wage ordinances, how are the increased wage costs absorbed? Primarily in two ways. First, there is a decline in employee turnover at firms that have to raise wages as a result of living wage ordinances. This has a significant positive impact on total firm costs: firms end up saving money from lower turnover. Second, productivity generally increases as employee moral and incentives are enhanced by living wages. Finally, there is probably some internal redistribution of income between owners and employees at firms covered by a living wage with the employees receiving a slightly higher portion of firm revenue. |
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8. Oak Park has a low poverty rate why do we need a living wage? First, the food pantry has reported a sharp increase in use by Oak Park residents so the perception of little or no poverty in the Village is not accurate. Second, the living wage is tied to work for the Village, not to residence in the Village, so there are employees who may not live in Oak Park who will benefit, avoiding some of the worst burdens imposed by low wage work and, as noted above, probably spending some additional money in the Village. This reinforces the principle that no worker, not just no Oak Park resident, should have to work for wages that fail to provide basic needs for flood, clothing and shelter. Oak Park taxpayers should not have their monies used to pay poverty level wages. |
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9. Will the proposed hotel be subject to the living wage ordinance? And, if so, what impact might that have? If the subsidies to the hotel exceed the $50,000 level, yes, the hotel would be subject to the living wage ordinance for the length of time the subsidy is in effect. This is not, however, likely to be detrimental to the hotel. Much of the hospitality industry in the city of Chicago is unionized with wage levels at or above that of the proposed living wage. To attract good employees the hotel will have to pay competitive wages. In addition, many organizations and individuals who might stay at the hotel or use its facilities for meetings would be less inclined to do so if the hotel is known as a low wage employer; a living wage commitment may an economic advantage to the hotel. |
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10. Why should the Village have a living wage how is it congruent with our values? Oak Park prides itself on its commitment to fairness as reflected in decades of fair housing work and statements welcoming residents of diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds as well gay and lesbian individuals and families. Village staff and residents have worked on changing policies and attitudes both within the Village and neighboring communities and the larger society. A living wage ordinance is consistent with these commitments. |
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11. Where can I get more information? Some places for additional information on living wage and living wage ordinances:
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