Statement of Mayor Walsh on Massachusetts Minimum Wage Law

"I applaud Governor Deval Patrick for signing an increase in our state’s minimum wage into law today. By 2017, Massachusetts will have the highest minimum wage in the nation at $11 per hour, signaling our shared commitment to working people across the Commonwealth. Our communities are increasingly becoming those of haves and have-nots. No parent working full-time should have to raise their children in poverty. This increase in the minimum and tipped wages will benefit more than half a million people, the majority of whom are women. It will allow these families to better support themselves and have more dollars to reinvest in our local economy. I also thank the many stakeholders who have played an important role in increasing our minimum wage and securing this pathway out of poverty for hard-working families in Massachusetts."