A Look at Ohio Issue #2

Issue 2 is a proposed Constitutional Amendment that wants to raise the minimum wage in Ohio and have it raised annually based on the rate of inflation. It also has a provision that will:

"provide an employee the employer's name, address, telephone number, and other contact information and update such information when it changes. An employer shall maintain a record of the name, address, occupation, pay rate, hours worked for each day worked and each amount paid an employee for a period of not less than three years following the last date the employee was employed. Such information shall be provided without charge to an employee or person acting on behalf of an employee upon request."

There are a few other smallish things, so read the text for yourself to make sure I didn't miss anything important to you.


The complete official argument AGAINST Issue 2:

Vote NO on Issue 2 for these reasons:

• It's a massive intrusion into your personal privacy . Backers say the amendment is about the minimum wage, but read the fine print. It gives employees or any person acting on behalf of an employee the right to demand private salary records for all employees (not just hourly workers). This will give access to your private information, which could then become public. Disclosure of home addresses and other personal data will put you at risk of identity theft.
• Records requirements are costly and open employers to harassment . The amendment was drafted by anti-business activists who propose that all public and private employers – including state and local governments and homeowners – maintain decades worth of records while employees are working and three years afterward. This will cost millions of dollars, yet employers will have to provide these records without charge to any employee or employee representative who asks. Unhappy workers or activist organizations will have authority to make repeated, costly requests.
• The amendment means a huge increase in the cost of government. State and local governments will be saddled both with enforcing the amendment and meeting their own costly obligations as major employers. You'll foot the bill.
• The amendment doesn't really help low-income Ohioans. A higher minimum wage will trigger thousands of layoffs in lower-paying jobs – hurting, rather than helping, Ohioans who need higher wages the most. Better approaches are to increase the federal Earned Income Tax Credit and to improve job-development and training.
• As part of the Constitution, the amendment cannot easily be changed to correct unintended consequences. This amendment, which is hostile to both employers and employees, will damage Ohio's job climate. The legislature will be powerless to fix it.

The complete official argument SUPPORTING Issue 2:

Vote YES on Issue 2 to restore the value of the minimum wage so hard working Ohioans are able to provide for themselves and their families. Raising the wage will encourage personal responsibility and lift many low-wage workers out of poverty.

The real value of the federal minimum wage has reached a 50-year low because it has not kept up with the rising cost of living. Today, a full-time worker at the current minimum wage of $5.15 earns just $206 per week, or $10,712 per year, well below the poverty line for a family of three.

We can do better. The Ohio Minimum Wage Amendment would restore the value that the minimum wage has lost over time.

The Amendment would raise Ohio's minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.85 per hour on January 1, 2007. Each year afterwards, the minimum wage would increase if the cost of living rises, protecting Ohio's lowest paid workers from losing ground. It also provides enforcement measures, similar to the federal minimum wage law, so Ohioans can protect themselves against unscrupulous employers.

The Amendment would raise wages for over 700,000 Ohio workers. On average, these workers provide half of their families' weekly earnings. Nearly three-quarters of the workers who would benefit are adults over twenty. More than 250,000 Ohio children have a parent who will benefit.

Twenty-two other states have raised the minimum wage above the federal level and studies show that r aising the minimum wage substantially helps families while improving the overall economy. Between 1997 and 2003, states with higher minimum wages had more overall job growth.

Ohioans have always valued hard work, but our minimum wage has not kept pace. We believe honest work deserves honest pay. Vote YES on Issue 2 to restore the value of the minimum wage for hard working Ohioans.

What I think:

While I agree that we're probably overdue for a minimum wage increase in Ohio, I personally oppose this proposed Issue for a few different reasons. First and foremost, this is not appropriate for an Amendment to the Ohio Constitution. While I believe a Constitution is a living document that needs to be updated now and again... constitutional law should be reserved for steadfast rights that citizens expect to enjoy unchanged for many, many years. Does anyone really think that this proposed solution will not be revisited and revised soon after its adoption? There is too much going on that is brand new. A promised annual wage raise based on inflation has never been implemented before that I have found. It will certainly need to be tweaked.

Second, I agree with the opposition's concerns about employees' right to privacy. The verbage seems innocuous enough, but the emphasized part in "Such information shall be provided without charge to an employee or person acting on behalf of an employee upon request" scares me a bit. That is not clearly defined.

Third, I believe that increasing the minimum wage does not help those that make minimum wage in the long run. Sure it might look nice to have a bit bigger paycheck, but companies can only afford to pay employees so much. Do you think the CEO is going to reduce his profits? Not on your life. That "pay raise" will come out of benefits, time off, or bonuses. This fact is made even worse when you factor in the additional paper work and red tape that this Issue mandates.

Be sure to read the text of the proposed Constitutional Amendment and decide for yourself.