It is no secret that New York City has an expensive living cost. It is currently the highest cost of living in the country. Surviving off of a minimum wage in a city that requires high expenses is a challenge that sometimes cannot be overcome. The earnings of minimum wage workers are the sole source of earnings for half of all families with a minimum wage worker. In April of 2015, the Comptroller’s Office discussed their proposed thoughts in an economic brief: “Income Analysis of a $15.00 Minimum Wage in New York City.” The impacts of a $15 minimum wage on low-wage workers by 2019 were analyzed. Comptroller Stringer publicly supports a raise in the minimum wage: “Raising the minimum wage is one of the single most effective tools we have to attack income inequality in our City, and there is no reason to delay an increase of up to $15 per-hour. The question should no longer be whether the minimum wage should be increased in New York City, but by how much. A $15 per-hour wage would put billions into the pockets of working families who need it the most.” Bill de Blasio, the current mayor of New York City, strongly advocates for this specific change as well, in hopes that it will fight for wage equality: “We know that nothing will do more to lift up working families and move our economy forward than raising wages—and the city is leading by example by doing just that for 50,000 New Yorkers” (source: Daily News). There are many who advocate for this movement and it is referred to as the fight for fifteen. The mayor’s announcement assured the residents of New York city that by the end of 2018, the minimum wage will be $15.

Comptroller Stringer analyzed the impacts of a higher wage on New York City based on the New York State Assembly’s proposal to increase it to $12.75 per-hour in 2017, $13.75 per-hour in 2018 and to $15 per-hour in 2019.

Based off of these progressions in our near future, New York City residents are expecting a positive change. Increased minimum wage can directly benefit those who are in a fast-growing sector, mainly fast-food services, of the workforce. Workers from these fast-growing sectors will see an increase from $113 to $149 by 2019, in their weekly earnings. Some other benefits are the direct impact on the spending of social assistance programs, some of which includes food stamps and Medicaid. There will be an annual decrease of $200 to $500 million on the amount spent on such social assistance programs. Also, increasing the minimum wage will increase the collection of income taxes.

Based off of the Comptroller’s office estimates, increasing the minimum wage to fifteen dollars will impact workers in all five boroughs of the city:

• Queens: 456,300 workers would experience a $3.2 billion annual wage increase;
• Brooklyn: 453,400 workers would experience a $3 billion annual wage increase;
• Bronx: 256,300 workers would experience a $1.9 billion annual wage increase;
• Manhattan: 237,100 workers would experience a $1.6 billion annual wage increase; and
• Staten Island: 52,800 workers would experience a $311 million annual wage increase.

It will also influence the annual spending cost of a family:

• $1,100 to $1,800 more on housing;
• $300 to $600 more on groceries;
• $200 to $400 more on entertainment;
• $200 to $300 more on healthcare; and
• $200 to $300 more on food consumed outside the home

Stringer also reported that a fifteen dollar income for every hour would minimize the amount of residents who contribute half of their income on rent by over 90,000. Although, minimum wage workers with the responsibilities to support a family are the main target for this proposed solution, they aren’t the only ones benefiting from this gradual increase of income. Thirteen percent of New York City students who are responsible for paying their college tuition are also directly benefitting from this. All of these estimated changes and benefits can drastically reduce the wealth gap that has been created for over the last thirty-five years.