One year after raising the minimum wage for employees of the City of San Antonio (from $11.47 to $13 per hour), COPS / Metro Alliance leaders are celebrating again after the City Council passed a budget that includes a second wage raise to $13.75 per hour. This follows an intense two-year campaign with over 1,000 leaders recently assembling with the Mayor and council representatives to remind them of their commitment to a living wage. When the Mayor made some noise about living wages being an 'outsider's' agenda, leader Maria Tijerina fired back with an editorial reminding her that COPS / Metro is a local organization with a robust constituency.
City Council additionally approved shifting funding for workforce development program Project QUEST out from human services into economic development with its own line in the budget. Funding increased to $2.2 million including $200 thousand to cover tuition for the Open Cloud Academy training developed in collaboration with Rackspace.
The Bexar County budget was also approved earlier this week with a new minimum wage set at $13.75 per hour (up from $13).
City Budget Approval Increases Funding for Workforce Development, KSAT
Data Shows Fewer People Living in Poverty in SA-New Braunfels Area, KSAT
Budget Sails Through Final Vote, San Antonio Express-News
City's Proposed Budget Changes Include $13.75 / Hour Starting Pay for City Employees, KSAT
City Council to Up Minimum Wage for City Employees, San Antonio Express-News
Raise Minimum Wage for City Workers, San Antonio Express-News
Living Wages are a Right, Not a Privilege, Rivard Report
New City Budget Might Include $15 Minimum Wage, KSAT
City Discusses Upping Minimum Wage to $15, Rivard Report
COPS Metro Alliance Calls for $15 Minimum Wage for City Employees, Texas Public Radio
Elected Officials Hope City Will Cough Up More for New Master Plan, San Antonio Express-News
Council Asks for More 'Aggressive Implementation of SA Tomorrow, Project QUEST Funding, Rivard Report