Sponsors of a plan to raise Minnesota's minimum wage for the first time since 2005 say they've been notified their bill has been vetoed.
Governor Tim Pawlenty had been warning he'd reject the wage hike bill on a few grounds. Among his concerns were the size of the boost in relation to the federal minimum wage and the lack of a distinctly lower wage for employees who earn tips.
Democratic Senator Ellen Anderson, who sponsored the measure in the Senate, says the veto "lets down" people struggling to make ends meet.
The bill sought to raise the lowest hourly wage for workers at large companies by 60 cents to $6.75 in mid-July and another dollar a year later. That's for businesses with annual sales above $625,000.
Smaller employers would have to pay at least 50 cents more an hour, or $5.75, starting in July and their minimum wage would go up to $6.75 a year later.
Pawlenty never specified what the lower wage for tipped employees would be, according to Senator Anderson. In one news conference he implied he didn't want to cut their pay, but didn't want it to rise to the same levels of other minimum wage workers.
The federal minimum wage for tipped employees is $2.13 an hour, which is what South Dakota goes by. In Wisconsin the minimum for food servers is $2.33 per hour.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
