It feels great to finally be producing for this project. There have been many hours of research, contemplation, and writing up to this point and it feels wonderful to finally put something towards the project on paper.
It was an overcast spring day in Seattle, Washington on June 3. A
gentle, salty-sweet smelling breeze wafted off the Puget Sound and seagulls swooped and cawed loudly as they played in the breeze as commuters walked to work. Kids put on their coats as they got on the bus for school. There
was a special buzz in the air that June day, as if something momentous was
going to happen. Something that would remain in the history books of Seattle
forever.
On that day, reporters and intrigued citizens gathered around the mayor of Seattle, Ed Murray, as he prepared to sign a landmark bill. The bill itself underwent months of development, scrutiny, and revision. But the people agonizing over its passage, or stoppage, also underwent months of emotional highs and lows. It finally was passed unanimously by the city council with a nine to zero vote.
This ordinance marked the increase of the hourly minimum wage for the Seattle area to fifteen dollars. It provides for the minimum wage to rise gradually, allowing businesses to increase their wages from the current 9.19 per hour up to eleven, thirteen, and finally, fifteen dollars an hour.
This was a life changing event for virtually everyone on all sides of the issue. Employees could hope for financial relief, while business owners began a long struggle that threatened to weaken their businesses and hurt their finances with some being put out of business or having to cut back on service. Years of work went into the fight for this bill from the many protesters that felt their fellow citizens deserved more. This ordinance changes not only the economy of Seattle forever, but the millions of its citizens.
On that day, reporters and intrigued citizens gathered around the mayor of Seattle, Ed Murray, as he prepared to sign a landmark bill. The bill itself underwent months of development, scrutiny, and revision. But the people agonizing over its passage, or stoppage, also underwent months of emotional highs and lows. It finally was passed unanimously by the city council with a nine to zero vote.
This ordinance marked the increase of the hourly minimum wage for the Seattle area to fifteen dollars. It provides for the minimum wage to rise gradually, allowing businesses to increase their wages from the current 9.19 per hour up to eleven, thirteen, and finally, fifteen dollars an hour.
This was a life changing event for virtually everyone on all sides of the issue. Employees could hope for financial relief, while business owners began a long struggle that threatened to weaken their businesses and hurt their finances with some being put out of business or having to cut back on service. Years of work went into the fight for this bill from the many protesters that felt their fellow citizens deserved more. This ordinance changes not only the economy of Seattle forever, but the millions of its citizens.
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| Anupam_ts. "Space Needle and Seattle Skyline" 03/23/13 via Flickr. Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic License |
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