Voters in the city of Portland, ME, rejected a measure that would phase in a $15 per hour minimum wage, according to Bangor Daily News. Under the proposal, employers with 500 or more workers would have had to pay the $15 minimum wage by 2017 while all other businesses in the city would have had to adhere to a $15 per hour minimum wage by 2019.
The source reports that opponents of the increase said local businesses would not be able to handle a $15 minimum wage.
In September Portland’s city council approved an ordinance that would increase the city’s minimum wage from $7.50 per hour to $10.10 per hour that will go into effect Jan. 1, 2016.
