Workers demand $30 minimum wage as cost of living surges in NYC

Labor leaders, elected officials and community advocates gathered on the steps of City Hall on March 10 to launch the “$30 for Our City” campaign, backing legislation that would gradually raise New York City’s minimum wage to $30 an hour.

The bill, introduced by Council Member Sandy Nurse, would nearly double the city’s current $17 hourly minimum and phase in the increase over several years, reaching $30 by 2030 for large employers.

Supporters say the proposal is a response to the city’s worsening affordability crisis, arguing that wages have failed to keep pace with the cost of living.

“Costs are up and wages are down, pushing New Yorkers out of our city,” organizers said in announcing the campaign. “Earning the minimum wage shouldn’t mean living in poverty.”

The push has drawn support from a broad coalition including The Alliance for a Greater New York (ALIGN), the Amazon Labor Union, Make the Road New York, New York Communities for Change, Teamsters Local 804 and the Workers Justice Project, along with several City Council members.

Under the proposal, companies with more than 500 employees would be required to pay workers at least $20 an hour by 2027 and reach $30 by 2030. Smaller employers would follow a slightly slower schedule, paying $21.50 by 2028 and reaching $30 by 2032. Future increases would then be tied to cost-of-living adjustments.

Nurse argued in her speech at the rally that the increase is necessary to keep pace with rising expenses in one of the country’s most expensive cities. 

“We are so behind,” Nurse said, noting that several other major U.S. cities have moved faster to raise wage floors despite having lower living costs than New York.

The proposal also reflects a key promise of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who supported a $30 minimum wage during his run for mayor.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the administration said the mayor believes “all New Yorkers need to make a living wage.” While City Hall is reviewing the legislation, the spokesperson said, the administration remains committed to tackling the cost-of-living crisis.

A spokesperson for Council Speaker Julie Menin said the speaker “looks forward to reviewing this legislation introduced this week.”

'The chance to live with dignity'

More than a million New Yorkers—over a quarter of the city’s workforce—currently earn the minimum wage, according to a 2023 report from then-Comptroller Brad Lander. Supporters argue that raising the wage floor would help working families remain in the city and reduce widening economic inequality.

At the March 10 rally, speakers framed the proposal as part of a broader fight over who gets to live and work in New York.

Ligia Guallpa, executive director of the Workers Justice Project, an organization that aids and advocates on behalf of immigrant construction workers, app-based delivery workers and cleaners, said many low-wage and immigrant workers who keep the city running struggle to afford the basics.

“Workers are fed up with living in poverty wages,” she said. “We’re demanding not just $30 an hour, but the chance to live with dignity in the city our labor powers.”

Guallpa pointed to the contradictions facing many low-wage workers. Construction workers help build new housing across the city but often cannot afford to live in the neighborhoods where they work, she said, while delivery workers who bring meals to residents struggle to afford groceries themselves.

Speaking at the rally, Connor Spence, president of the Amazon Labor Union, framed the wage demand as a matter of fairness in one of the world’s richest cities.

“This city is where we live, we work, we dream—and it’s also the wealthiest city in the world,” Spence said. Yet the benefits of that wealth remain highly concentrated, he added, noting that a small share of residents control a disproportionate amount of the city’s wealth.

Workers also shared personal stories about the financial strain of living in the city on low wages.

Joelle Jean, an Amazon warehouse worker who began working for the company in 2023, said she struggled to secure housing because landlords viewed Amazon jobs as unstable or too low-paying. At times she had to choose between paying bills and buying groceries, she said, and many of her coworkers faced similar challenges.

Business groups, however, have warned that such a steep increase in the minimum wage could put pressure on employers. Tom Grech, president and CEO of the Queens Chamber of Commerce, told CBS News that some small businesses might be forced to reduce staff or hours to offset higher labor costs.

Supporters counter that economic research suggests minimum-wage increases rarely produce significant job losses. A 2024 review of 88 studies by economists Ben Zipperer and Arindrajit Dube found that most minimum-wage hikes show either no measurable job losses or only small employment effects.

For workers like Jean, even while working long hours, many still struggle to meet basic responsibilities. “Some associates were living in shelters like me, in their cars or packed into one room with family,” she said.