Hampton Roads small businesses weigh in on possible $15 minimum wage

By Allison Bazzle February 4, 2020

A standard and moderate living doesn’t come cheap in the Hampton Roads area.

The Economic Policy Institute in Washington D.C. found a four-person household must make more than $7,000 a month. Someone living on their own needs to make more than $3,000 a month.

But small business owners across Hampton Roads wonder if a $15 minimum wage increase would hurt business.

“This does not strike me as a time where it makes sense to put a large number of new regulatory requirements on employers just at the moment,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia.

Secretary Scalia warned against minimum wage hikes during a visit to Hampton Roads on Monday. Restaurant owners in the area hope Virginia lawmakers listen to him.

Small businesses weigh in on possible $15 minimum wage