BY HARRY WHITED Alaska’s Minimum Wage Standards Initiative is on the general ballot on Nov. 5. The bill proposes raising the minimum wage until the year 2027. According to the bill: n $13 an hour effective July 1, 2025 n $14 an hour effective July 1, 2026 n $15 an hour effective July 1, 2027 n After that, adjusting the minimum wage annually for inflation However, it is not raising the minimum wage that concerns industries in Alaska. The issue lies in the new allotment for sick leave for employees. The bill proposes allowing 56 hours of sick leave per year if the employer employs 15 or more people and 40 or more hours if the employer employs less than 15 people. The caveat is seasonal workers would not be exempt from this. Kati Capozzi, President and CEO of the Alaska Chamber, spoke about which industries could be affected. “The sick leave in particular we have concerns within the hospitality industry, the tourism industry, and the fishing industry,” Capozzi said. “If you hire someone six months after they’ve worked for you then the sick leave that they had accrued needs to be carried over." While it is not at the forefront of the bill, it is one of the proposals that raises concern among the state’s industries. “These are businesses that are very nimble and frankly don’t have the ability to do things like offer sick leave and keep track of it,” Capozzi said. Capozzi said that this could affect any business no matter the size. “Mom and pop” shops, small businesses and non-profits would have to comply with the mandate no matter the size of their staff. “It creates a lot of red tape that our small businesses that are really struggling to bring on staff, keep staff, and have a successful business,” Capozzi said. The initiative could affect small businesses most. Capozzi said larger businesses already provide sick leave. However, smaller businesses could have a harder time since they may not be in a position to provide much sick leave. “Adding this requirement on to [small businesses], we’re concerned about the impact it would have on their businesses,” Capozzi said, “it would be another mandated element that would make doing business in Alaska more difficult.” There is a lot of red tape that comes with the initiative and Capozzi said it is very “ill-defined.” Capozzi also said that the initiative does not specifically identify what constitutes sick leave. “Imagine you’re a tourism company at the end of your season and you’re in your last week and someone says ‘Oh, I’m sick. I need to take some sick leave’ that’s something that becomes a huge concern for tourism companies,” Capozzi said. www.AlaskaMiners.org 15 Minimum wage on ballot BACKUP POWER FOR ANY NEED. You need genuine power to keep you operating during an outage. From expansive data centers to your local gas station, Generac Industrial Power’s standby solutions ensure that you have the power to help meet your business needs, while our factory-certified technicians provide the most advanced service support to keep you productive. Find out what power solution is right for you. SMSEQUIPMENT.COM
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