Seattle struck a giant blow against inequality this year when—after months of consensus building by business, labor, and community leaders—it put its minimum wage on course to hit $15 in 2017. This came only a few weeks after 41 Republicans in the U.S. Senate refused to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10, a figure below its real 1968 value. What can Seattle’s minimum-wage victory teach other cities and Washington, D.C., about inequality, job growth, and the middle class?
The Center for American Progress will host Seattle Mayor Ed Murray, who will deliver keynote remarks on how Seattle passed its $15 minimum wage and how it can serve as a blueprint for other cities trying tackle inequality while kick starting job growth. A panel discussion of experts will follow, focusing on how local minimum-wage increases strengthen the middle class and local economies.
Welcoming remarks:
Neera Tanden, President, Center for American Progress
Keynote remarks:
Ed Murray, Mayor, Seattle, Washington
Featured panelists:
Nick Hanauer, Partner, Second Avenue Partners
Valarie Long, International Executive Vice President, Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
Ed Murray, Mayor, Seattle, Washington
Michael Reich, Professor of Economics and Director of the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, University of California, Berkeley
Moderated by:
Ted Strickland, Counselor, Center for American Progress; President, Center for American Progress Action Fund