The council voted 11-0 in favor of the ordinance, which was originally proposed by Mayor Michael B. Hancock and Councilwoman Robin Kniech.
Denver’s current minimum wage is $11.10 which is still ahead of the national minimum wage of $7.25 — $11 bucks an hour doesn’t go as far as it needs to for many in the metro area when it comes to the rapidly rising cost of housing and cost of living in general.
The change isn’t immediate — but will be raised over the next few years in increments.
$12.85 an hour on Jan. 1, 2020
$14.77 an hour on Jan. 1, 2021
$15.87 an hour on Jan. 1, 2022
Annual adjustments each year thereafter based on the Consumer Price Index.
There has been a lot of hype around raising the minimum wage and even more studies that serve to justify an array of different opinions from fiscal salvation to economic ruin. The truth is still murky, but since Seattle’s economy hasn’t collapsed into a burning wreck, we can say that in the near term there isn’t too much that’s going to change.
The minimum wage increase will boost the paychecks of more than 90,000 people who work in Denver alone. Not a bad start to the new year, that’s for sure.