Seattle company raises its minimum wage to $70k annually

Gravity Payments a Seattle based credit card processing company is raising the pay of all employees to a minimum $70 000, some of whom currently make barely half that. In total 70 will get a raise and the financing for the raises is coming from company founder and CEO Dan Price, who will lower his $1 million dollar yearly salary to $70 000.

“If the Quebec government is using the competitive salary justification, then it should apply to all health care workers and not just the chosen few.”

This is in contrast to what the Quebec government is doing in the health care sector, where by decree they raised the salaries for health-sector executives for up to 20 per cent. Director General and CEO of the MUHC, Normand Rinfret received a 10 per cent increase bringing his salary to $289,920 from $263,564.

Aside from the increase being  more than my take home pay, these executives run ‘monopolies’ without a need to compete for customers.

Joanne Beauvais, press attache to Health Minister Gaétan Barrette said in defending the raises, “the salaries in the rest of Canada are really, really higher, so we had to be more competitive to keep our good managers here.”  Wow, if the Quebec government is using the competitive salary justification, then it should be applied to all health care workers! Not just the chosen few.

“The handful of cherry picked health-sector executives will continue to distance themselves in the lap of luxury from the working class.”

Employees at Gravity Payments, with their extra money will invest in the economy by doing the one thing which  stimulates the economy,  spend. The handful of cherry picked health-sector executives will continue to distance themselves in the lap of luxury from the working class.

Note:  The Quebec government is planning to hike the base salary of MNAs from $88,000 to $136,000. A 54.5 per cent increase.

Read the CBC feature: Seattle company raises its minimum wage to $70k annually