Citing the struggles that South County farmers face on a daily basis – including a short water supply and competition from imported products – the Gilroy Chamber of Commerce has weighed in on the debate over raising the minimum wage in unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County.
“Since the South County consists of a large percentage of unincorporated areas dedicated to agri-business, raising the minimum wage will create undue economic pressure on this business sector,” wrote Chamber President/CEO Susan Valenta in a recent letter to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors.
The minimum wage in unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County is the same as the state’s minimum wage requirement, $8 per hour. For District 3 Supervisor Dave Cortese, that’s just not enough.
“People cannot afford the bare minimum they need to survive without relying on government assistance,” was Cortese’s appraisal of the fiscal dilemma faced by the county’s minimum wage earners in a report he presented to the Board of Supervisors’ Finance and Government Operations Committee back in May.
For Valenta and the Chamber’s Board of Directors, any increase in the bottom line for agricultural wages is unanimously opposed. The Chamber doesn’t rule out increases in specific pockets in the San Jose area, however.
District 1 Supervisor Mike Wasserman, speaking at the time of Cortese’s report, aligned himself with the GCC’s view of the situation.
“I’m concerned about how an increase in the minimum wage would affect agriculture and small businesses,” Wasserman said. “My goal is to attract and retain higher-paying jobs to the region, so workers will earn higher wages.”
Cortese’s report didn’t specify a timeline for an increase in the minimum wage. It also didn’t address who would get the final say – the supes or the electorate – on approving any potential increase.
Cortese’s office explained the report was written to explore the pros and cons of raising the minimum wage in unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County, not to provide a definitive road map of the steps involved. The County Executive and County Counsel will examine the report and deliver their findings back to the Finance and Government Operations Committee Aug. 8., according to Cortese’s office.
