NY Fast Food Wages

A woman holds a sign during a news conference for a wage increase for fast food workers outside the Senate Chamber at the Capitol on Wednesday, May 20, 2015, in Albany, N.Y. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

(Associated Press)

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Most fast-food workers in New York will receive a wage increase to $15 an hour, but the details still have to be worked out.

Members of the state wage board said during their meeting this morning that they all agreed the wage should be raised to at least $15 an hour.

"The three members on the board are in agreement that there should be a substantial increase," said Byron Brown, chairman of the wage board and mayor of Buffalo.

All three members said at $15 an hour was the minimum amount for people to be self-sufficient if they are supporting a family. And most fast-food workers are, they said. There are nearly 200,000 fast-food workers in New York, according to the state Department of Labor.

New York's minimum wage is $8.75 and set to rise to $9 at year's end.

In May, Gov. Andrew Cuomo appointed the wage board to look at the state-wide minimum wage in the fast-food industry and consider raising it. His choices for the board have been criticized for leaving out anyone who represents the fast-food or restaurant industry.

Melissa Fleischut, president and CEO of the New York State Restaurant Association, said the group is against any wage increase that targets a single industry.

"The NYS Restaurant Association continues to oppose a minimum wage increase that specifically targets a single industry," Fleischut said. "Any substantial raise to wages needs to be phased in over a significant amount of time to allow restaurants to prepare for a huge increase in labor costs."

Fleischut also cautioned that the board should make should the wage increase targets large chains, and that it doesn't make it harder for people who need a flexible work schedule to have one.

The board held four public hearings throughout the state this month where it heard from 2,000 people.

"What workers have shown us is a system that is like wage slavery," said board member Mike Fishman, who represents labor on the board and is the secretary-treasurer of Service Employees International Union. Workers get such short notice on their hours that it's nearly impossible to get another job, but it's also difficult to get 40 hours in the fast-food business, he said. The industry is structured in a way that's keeping people in poverty, he said.

The other board member, Kevin Ryan, is the chairman and founder of GILT, an online flash-sale website. Ryan represents business, is involved in several other businesses and is on the board of Human Rights Watch.

The board didn't vote to make a recommendation to the state labor commissioner today because it still has to work out the specifics of whom the wage order would cover and what incentives there might be for businesses to provide more stable schedules.

It's unlikely that small chains with 10 or fewer locations would be impacted by the board's order. The goal, board members said, is to make large fast-food chains, who are clearly making a profit, pay their workers a liveable wage.

The board is expected to make a final recommendation by July. That recommendation goes to the state labor commissioner, who then decides whether to issue an order based upon it.

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