Living Wage Laws & Communities: Smarter Economic Development, Lower Than Expected Costs
Andrew J. Elmore
Economic Justice Project
November 2003
Brennan Center for Justice
NYU School of Law
Living Wage Laws:
Expanding Nationwide
In one of the most pronounced local policy trends in recent years,
scores of cities and counties across the United States—more than
one hundred as of July 2003—have adopted local “living wage” laws.
Under these laws, employers receiving city contracts or city business
subsidies must pay full-time workers a wage sufficient to support
themselves and their families at a subsistence level.
The policy goals driving these initiatives—that hard work should
be rewarded with adequate pay and benefits, and that taxpayer
dollars should not support jobs that leave workers and families
in poverty—have found broad support among local lawmakers and
the public.
Questions Raised About
Living Wage Laws
In assessing the value of living wage laws as policy tools, it is important
to understand their costs and benefits for communities.
Especially in a time of budget deficits and job losses, local policymakers
have had two key questions about these laws:
• Will they increase the costs of city contracts?
• Will they limit the ability of cities to use business subsidies to
increase the number of good jobs in their communities?
To answer these questions, we asked local government officials in
communities with living wage laws to examine the impact of these
laws after they were implemented. We have collected their findings
in this report. Significantly, local government officials found:
• Only small increases in city contract costs as a percentage of
city budgets—and less than initially expected.
• No significant adverse effects on city business subsidy
programs—and in some cases such programs were actually
strengthened.
By collecting the actual findings of government officials in communities
that have implemented living wage laws, this report provides
detailed information that may be valuable to other communities
considering whether to enact similar laws.
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November 2003
Brennan Center for Justice
NYU School of Law
Living Wage Laws:
Expanding Nationwide
In one of the most pronounced local policy trends in recent years,
scores of cities and counties across the United States—more than
one hundred as of July 2003—have adopted local “living wage” laws.
Under these laws, employers receiving city contracts or city business
subsidies must pay full-time workers a wage sufficient to support
themselves and their families at a subsistence level.
The policy goals driving these initiatives—that hard work should
be rewarded with adequate pay and benefits, and that taxpayer
dollars should not support jobs that leave workers and families
in poverty—have found broad support among local lawmakers and
the public.
Questions Raised About
Living Wage Laws
In assessing the value of living wage laws as policy tools, it is important
to understand their costs and benefits for communities.
Especially in a time of budget deficits and job losses, local policymakers
have had two key questions about these laws:
• Will they increase the costs of city contracts?
• Will they limit the ability of cities to use business subsidies to
increase the number of good jobs in their communities?
To answer these questions, we asked local government officials in
communities with living wage laws to examine the impact of these
laws after they were implemented. We have collected their findings
in this report. Significantly, local government officials found:
• Only small increases in city contract costs as a percentage of
city budgets—and less than initially expected.
• No significant adverse effects on city business subsidy
programs—and in some cases such programs were actually
strengthened.
By collecting the actual findings of government officials in communities
that have implemented living wage laws, this report provides
detailed information that may be valuable to other communities
considering whether to enact similar laws.