Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

In the absence of major state or federal action to improve the quality of jobs available to less educated workers, cities have enacted workplace regulations in an effort to reduce inequality in pay and work conditions. In April 2014, the city of Seattle passed legislation to increase the minimum wage for all workers from $9.47 to $15 per hour incrementally over time. The first two increases occurred in April 2015 and January 2016; the city minimum wage is currently between $10.50 and $13 per hour, depending on the employer size and benefits provided.  This law has the potential to directly affect about 100,000 people working in Seattle at low wages, who are disproportionately poor or low-income (67%) and female (57%) (Klawitter, Long, & Plotnick, 2014). In addition, there may be indirect effects—on wages, employment, and prices—on the 3.5 million people living in the metropolitan area. The Seattle experience also holds lessons for the many states and locales weighing a similar policy change.

As part of a comprehensive evaluation of the effects of the Seattle minimum wage on employers, workers and their families, and the local economy, we are conducting a longitudinal, qualitative study of workers making less than $15/hour. The study seeks to capture workers’ own perspectives on making ends meet with low wages in an expensive city during the implementation of a local wage floor.  We are particularly interested in the ways in which the minimum wage is perceived by workers as potentially or actually affecting their calculations regarding time allocation between work and family obligations, and the ways in which workers combine work and public assistance, and strategize to survive financially. 

This paper will present findings on these key topics from the first two waves of data collection (spring 2015 and currently).  We restricted our sample to those workers who live in low-income families (<$50,000 annual income) and who have custodial children in the home.  The sample of 55 workers is diverse across many characteristics, including gender, age of youngest child, immigration status, and industry. Our preliminary analysis of the first wave of data suggests that workers support the principles behind the minimum wage law in Seattle, but hold little hope of the law fundamentally improving their financial circumstances.  Most of our sample members do not have sufficient income to meet their monthly expenses, despite receiving subsidized housing and food stamps.  In that context, their experiences tell them that any increase in earnings is likely to be offset by price increases or benefit reductions. Our analysis of wave 2 interviews will go further to uncover the changes that occurred for study participants in the year between interviews, and how those changes (or lack thereof) have shaped their expectations.