On Thursday's program, we invited Amy Edelman from Philadelphia's Night Kitchen Bakery to talk about raising the wage in the Pennsylvania and why she pays her employees a living wage. Amy and her business is part of the Business for a Fair Minimum Wage coalition. Here's a rush transcript from Amy's interview, and you can listen to the full interview here
Rick Smith: So on Monday, the big rally you had a couple hundred people from across the state converge on the capitol and say "hey, we would like to see the minimum wage increased from its paltry $7.25 up to something that maybe we can live on without having to go to our government and beg for food for our kids, for school lunch programs, heating assistance. Any of that stuff. We like the work that we do to be respected and for us to be 'oh I dont know' be able to support ourselves off the labor that we do." And it seems to me, very commonsensical.
What's interesting to me is that the Republicans have taken this on, and in a very weird fashion. Historically here, Republicans have been anti raising the minimum wage. They're now supporting the idea. The question now is where's that number. Because in the past what it's always been it's going to kill small busienss. And this is what the Chamber of Commerce is still saying.
The Republican party is saying "we're going to raise it." The Chamber of Commerce, the NFIB, all of these different trade associations and front groups are "NO! NO! BAD! KILLS SMALL BUSINESS!.
Well, here to talk about how this would effect her small business. A small business owner. I've asked Amy Edelman, she's the co-owner of Night Kitchen Bakery there in Philadelphia. She's also a member of Business for a Fair Minimum Wage. Amy thanks for taking time for us!
Amy Edelman: Thanks. Thanks for having me.
RS: So let me ask you. Looking at this issue of raising the minimum wage, how would this increase effect you as a small business owner?
AE Well, it wouldn't effect me at all. To be honest with you, I don't have a single employee who makes under ten dollars an hour.
RS Really? So that whole frame that this is going to kill small business, is not all the relevant in your world?
AE In my world, I see a lot of other buesinnes in the community that my busniess is in, which is Chestnut Hill, co-business owners, people that I know in the community also pay around the same wgaes that we pay. And I know that I have to compete with the other small businesses in order to keep my good people here.
RS One of the things that I have said about the minimum wage, is it's not the small business owners, it's not Amy who is attached to her workforce, who sees her workers everyday coming and going and the struggles they may encounter because of low wages. It's these big behemoths, it's these McDonalds, it's these chains that don't see into the yes of their workforce that aren't attached to their workers.
AE I that's absolutely true. Absolutely correct.
RS So when you hear the Chamber of Commerce go "it's going to kill us, it's going to kill small business." What do you think?
AE Well, I don't know how anyone can pay a worker in good conscience less than $10 an hour. I know when I graduated culinary school over 25 years ago, to date myself, I was making $8 an hour. I was struggling to repay student loans and make my car payment and rent every month. And that was over 25 years ago. So I don't know how anyone could possibly live and make all their expenses let alone raise a family on $7.25 an hour.
You can listen to whole
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