More at stake than just pay in Tucson’s minimum wage ballot measure | Local news

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“I believe that all workers have the right to a decent wage that will help them live their lives and pay the rising costs of housing, food, gas and energy,” she said.

However, Guymon argues that introducing the minimum wage could make the city less competitive when it comes to attracting businesses to the area.

“One of the (Tucson) key competitive factors has been low cost of living and low labor,” he said. “If we start to accelerate this, it could have some negative effects on our ability to attract companies that are involved in our region.”

Hammond says companies respond to mandated wage increases in a number of ways, and it’s impossible to know how large Tucson corporations would respond.

“(Firms) can adjust their hours, they can raise prices, they can accept lower profits – some of which may affect prices, some of which may not,” he said. “We don’t know exactly what companies are going to do, but it’s likely that some of it would go away, especially for the types of companies that are able to raise prices.”

Tips for workers

Some of the key provisions in Prop. 206 would directly affect employees who tip. State law allows tipped workers to pay $ 3 less than workers without tips, and the bill would maintain that difference by allowing workers to earn $ 12 an hour when the minimum wage is $ 15 achieved.

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