HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) —
The Connecticut House of Representatives has approved a bill to increase the state’s minimum wage.
The House voted 89-53, with eight lawmakers not voting, to pass the bill Wednesday night. The vote came nearly a week after the state Senate approved the legislation.
The current wage of $8.25 an hour would rise to $8.70 on Jan. 1, 2014, and then to $9 on Jan. 1, 2015. The last increase was in 2010.
The state Department of Labor says between 65,000 and 70,000 workers in Connecticut were paid the minimum wage last year. That’s about 4 percent of the labor force.
Pro-labor Democrats said low-wage workers deserve a raise.
But pro-business Republicans said a higher wage would force struggling firms to cut costs by firing workers and raising prices.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has said he will sign the legislation if it reaches his desk.
