Colorado to Lower Minimum Wage

" Every penny counts. The stay Colorado was getting ready. -- lower its minimum wage while the national minimum wage is seven dollars and 25 cents Colorado's. A little higher at seven dollars 28 cents but come January 1. It will drop four cents to seven dollars 24 cents why are they doing that's at a time when so many folks are struggling to make ends meet joining us now. Is Cheryl Hoffman -- end of the Colorado Department of Labor. And employment and that is the big question I know that your time is to inflation which can you reverse your policy. Considering that unemployment is at nine point 8% right now."

" Well in the state of Colorado's. Minimum wage is tied to the State's constitution in 2006. Voters chose to -- minimum waits to the CPI. And for the first time in what we can figure as spend you know have relatively long time that CPI actually decreased point 6%. Four are the period that we're looking NASA this'll be the first time that actually we have seen a decrease in minimum wage so once you. Put things into the State's constitution it's it's very difficult and do that unfortunately."

" So the argument always has -- minimum wage goes up -- it's gonna hurt jobs. Specially built them. The kids in the people that are that are on skilled workers and so forth so that it's a reverse true do you think that this brought in minimum wage will somehow. Help job creation."

" Not necessarily. You know out then but 2.5. Million. Strong workforce in the state 40000 individuals. Earning minimum wage or below and below would be does tipped workers. And so it certainly doesn't hurt the work force that now will Seattle let. We'll likely be at 3%. Decrease in the wage because it most of players must still pay. The federal rate. That as nearly -- really the critical piece here is job creation. And and it's you know less than 2% of the workforce there will be impact said. By the -- Kris but they're still contributing to the economy and -- the state can really focus sign. Appealing to employers to not lower the wage they don't half to you the players can certainly continue to pay the wages that they are now. And then also suggests just really focusing on job creation -- share what is the reaction been there this at a Colorado from the press from the average folks mean what I say. Well not to be honest it's it's shocking -- and again it's it's really an -- to see your CPI go down and we attribute that to the cost of fuel. In the summer of oh wait fuel prices where relatively high Hamas at the highest in the without significant drop with the recession in the beginning about nine. So shocked at number one people didn't know that when they voted on -- 2006. Fence there could be a time where we see it decrease. And from the advocacy groups the folks that tried to get this initiative on the ballot. They're really appealing some players as I sent to just keep their wages stable and and and continue to pay with their -- now and again. You know we could be looking at a 3% drop but employers are required to decrease as we share what is unemployment in Colorado right now what's your rate. That we're at seven point 6% and we continue to follow we dropped to half a percent last. Month we release our new rates tomorrow. And you know where what that when he associates a country that has seen a relatively modest increases in now what we're seeing as an hour. Modest decreases in our rates so. You know we were slower to go into the recession and -- hope mean that where what among the first to recover share profit from the static."