OPINION: Athens should raise its minimum wage

Bryce Hoehn is a senior studying political science and an opinion columnist for The New Political.

Please note that these views and opinions do not reflect those of The New Political.

With pandemic guidelines loosening up throughout the country and businesses reopening, many establishments are struggling to find workers. Many of these businesses appear to be restaurants and fast food chains, most of which pay minimum wage. 

The federal minimum wage has stood at $7.25 per hour since 2009, despite recent efforts from congressional democrats. In Ohio, the minimum wage is slightly higher at $8.80 per hour and is adjusted yearly. However, both the state and federal wages fall short of the living wage that “fight for $15” activists such as fast food workers in Cleveland are advocating. 

The MIT Living Wage Calculator has estimated the cost of living in Athens County for a single working adult to be $14.18, over 60% higher than Ohio’s current minimum wage. While there has been a recent state level push to raise the minimum wage by Democratic-controlled state legislatures, it is unlikely to pass through the Ohio Statehouse’s Republican supermajority.

Complaints from businesses about worker shortages have gotten a tremendous amount of attention from the public. In response, Gov. Mike DeWine announced over the summer that federal unemployment benefits would be cut to incentivize people to return to work. This is not a productive solution. Instead of cutting an essential lifeline to those struggling financially, lawmakers should raise the minimum wage to an amount people can reasonably live on. 

Athens’ status as a rural college town puts it in a unique position. The local economy largely revolves around the financial activity of college students, who traditionally do not have disposable income. Businesses such as book stores, fast food chains, restaurants and coffee shops all employ students who are typically paid minimum wage while simultaneously relying on the student demographic for business.

If Athens raised the minimum wage, students throughout the city may see a dramatic increase in disposable income, which could potentially create an economic boom in the post-pandemic local economy as students return to campus. Imagine how many more students would suddenly be stopping by Court Street for lunch instead of microwaving Ramen, or going to a coffee shop between classes instead of brewing it in their dorms. 

Although businesses would have to pay workers increased salaries, this could easily be offset by increased demand from college students who would  have the disposable income to spend on these businesses. Even if increased demand does not entirely offset the cost of a wage increase, businesses can still raise their prices to accommodate. A slight increase in price for a fast food burger is well worth it if the person making it can then earn enough to survive.

Additionally, most customers would likely earn more at their jobs as a result of a wage increase that would also more than offset the increased price of a burrito. 

Another potential issue facing cities looking to raise their minimum wage is the threat that businesses could relocate outside of the cities’ borders. However, in Athens this seems extremely unlikely to happen as most of the previously mentioned businesses that rely on the student demographic also depend heavily on foot traffic and proximity to campus. Between these factors and the rural area surrounding Athens, businesses that may want to avoid the wage increase have a limited area to go.

Increasing the city minimum wage could also raise thousands of people out of poverty. 

Located in the 8th poorest county in Ohio, Athens residents desperately need an influx of cash. One area where this is most needed is in housing. The average cost of rent for a studio apartment in Athens is $643 per month according to BestPlaces. For a full time worker making minimum wage, that comes out to nearly half of their income before taxes.

Focusing on their education, most college students cannot work that many hours. The university guidelines for student workers suggest students should not work more than 25 hours per week. If you apply those guidelines to a minimum wage job, that student is only making $953 per month, meaning that after rent is paid, there is very little left for groceries, let alone utilities, textbooks or entertainment. Raising the minimum wage would take this huge burden off the shoulders of college students.

As for whether or not Athens has the legal authority to raise the minimum wage, the answer is complicated. In 2016, former Attorney General Mike DeWine fought back against activists in Cleveland by announcing his legal opinion that cities could not raise their minimum wage. A few months later, this opinion was seemingly cemented into law when Gov. John Kasich signed SB331 - a 30 page bill mostly pertaining to pet store regulations with a single line on page 15 that states “[n]o political subdivision shall establish a minimum wage rate different from the wage rate required under [Ohio Constitution Article II Section 34a].” 

The section of the constitution that is referenced refers to Ohio’s minimum wage laws, including the yearly index, exemptions for small businesses, the minimum tipping wage, etc. However, the second to last paragraph of this section contains the following (bold added for emphasis):

“Laws may be passed to implement its provisions and create additional remedies, increase the minimum wage rate and extend the coverage of the section, but in no manner restricting any provision of the section or the power of municipalities under Article XVIII of this constitution with respect to the same.”

This paragraph explicitly guarantees municipalities the right to raise their minimum wage contrary to what SB331 says. The only foreseeable loophole potentially preventing Athens from raising the minimum wage based on this interpretation is what powers Article XVIII grants the city. Article XVIII does not explicitly mention raising the minimum wage, however it does grant municipalities broad powers in Article XVIII Section 3:

“Municipalities shall have authority to exercise all powers of local self-government and to adopt and enforce within their limits such local police, sanitary and other similar regulations, as are not in conflict with general laws.”

Taking this section into consideration, it is somewhat unclear whether minimum wage legislation counts as “similar regulations,” but the reference in Article II Section 34A stating that laws may not be passed to restrict these powers in reference to the minimum wage seemingly implies that it does.

The legal ambiguity of raising the minimum wage may seem like a roadblock, but it would not  be the first time Athens took on the state in progressive, yet legally grey areas. 

Despite Ohio law explicitly outlining that those convicted of marijuana possession can be fined and face jail time; Athens residents overwhelmingly passed The Athens Cannabis Ordinance (TACO) ballot initiative in 2017. This effectively decriminalized marijuana and reduced fines to $0. Yet, according to research, there has been no legal challenge to TACO, and several other Ohio cities have now passed similar legislation.

Another example of this trend would be the recent mask mandate in response to COVID-19. While Athens and several other cities throughout Ohio had mandates in place last year, a recent law passed by the Ohio Senate limits the power of city health departments. This legislation prohibits a local health board of health from imposing a broad-based mask mandate. Whether or not this would also apply to a city council is unspecified, but Athens Law Director Lisa Eliason argued that Athens’ status as a statutory city grants it legal authority to do so. Following this legal opinion, Athens City Council then passed an extended mandate.

If Athens can break away from the state on these issues, what’s stopping the city from doing the same on its minimum wage?

Raising the minimum wage is the catalyst that Athens needs to revitalize its post COVID-19 economy. It could increase economic activity throughout the city as thousands of people would suddenly have the disposable income to participate in the local economy. More importantly, this change would lift our lower income population out of poverty.