Last week, two reports on Seattle’s minimum wage ordinance reached opposite conclusions. Researchers at the University of Washington found that Seattle’s minimum wage is costing jobs. A second report, requested by the the Mayor’s Office, claimed that the UW study was false.
The University of Washington study found that while wages for low-earners rose by 3 percent since the law went into effect, hours for those workers dropped by 9 percent. The average worker making less than $19 an hour in Seattle has seen a total loss of $125 a month since the law went into effect.