Judge strikes down St. Louis' minimum wage increase hours before it takes effect
ST. LOUIS • A circuit judge struck down the city’s minimum wage law on Wednesday just hours before it was set to go into force.
Circuit Judge Steven Ohmer issued a sobering blow to the city’s law just after 4:30 p.m., declaring it void and out of step with state law. The city quickly said it would appeal to a higher court.
A consortium of groups sued last month in an attempt to stop the city from instituting an $11 minimum wage by 2018. The suit alleged the action conflicted with current state law.
Ohmer agreed, saying the city’s law raising the wage was “unenforceable and in conflict” with current state law that sets the minimum wage at $7.65.
“Obviously my clients are happy for the certainty with the impending midnight deadline for the increase,” said lawyer Jane Dueker, who argued on behalf of business groups, including the Missouri Chamber of Commerce, against the increase. “The city doesn’t have the authority to do what it did.”
On Thursday, the city’s minimum wage was set to rise to $8.25 an-hour— 60 cents above the state’s minimum wage. The law, approved by the Board of Aldermen in August, would have triggered increases on Jan. 1 to $9. Then, it would go to $10 in 2017 and $11 on Jan. 1, 2018.
Ohmer’s order blocked the city from instituting the increase, which means minimum-wage workers in the city will not see an increase unless an appellate court reverses his decision — something that could take months.
The city argued that the increase was proper, and also cited social issues from the Ferguson unrest as a reason for implementation.
Ohmer said it was the court’s duty to “determine the validity of the ordinance without considering the social or economic effect of its enforcement.”
Mayor Francis Slay was a vocal supporter of the law and pressed aldermen to pass it before a perceived state deadline.
“We will appeal the ruling with the hope that higher courts will affirm the city’s authority to adopt its own minimum wage,” Slay said via Twitter.
St. Louis City Counselor Winston Calvert, who represents Slay and the city, pledged to appeal.
“We’ve always known these issues would be resolved by the appellate courts,” Calvert said. “We are heartened that the judge agreed with the city on three of the five counts, but disappointed in the court’s decision on two of them.”
Ohmer agreed with the city that it had the power to enact legislation of local concern but said the minimum wage increase was not in conformity with state law.
Associated Industries of Missouri, a business group that was part of the lawsuit, applauded Ohmer’s decision.
“State law controls how much an employer must pay an employee,” Ray McCarty, the group’s president, said. “No local government has ever had the authority to issue an ordinance that directly violates state law. We believe the court made a correct decision.”
Some argued the city’s increase would force businesses to leave for St. Louis County, where local leaders declined to consider a wage increase to match their neighbors.
The issue was part of a national debate over raising the wage. Over the last few months, several major cities — including Los Angeles, the nation’s second largest city — approved rate increases. Proponents hope the local actions may spur state and federal legislators, who have been hesitant to approve significant minimum wage increases, to take a similar course.
Richard von Glahn, of Missouri Jobs with Justice, echoed those sentiments on Wednesday, saying: “The increase passed by the Board of Aldermen in St. Louis reflects a growing consensus that the crisis of poverty wages needs to be addressed at every level in our economy and we thank the City’s elected officials for their continued leadership on this.”
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