NEW ORLEANS — Does $15 an hour sound like a decent wage to you?
There’s now a proposed plan to raise the minimum wage for employees of the City of New Orleans to $15 an hour instead of the current $11 an hour.
Public demonstrations and demands for a living wage have been consistent throughout the pandemic and the new pay plan may be a sign those loud calls are being heard.
It’s hard to compare the work of New Orleans firefighters to that of waiters or cashiers, but when it comes to their hourly pay, there may not be a whole lot of separation. Most stand behind raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
“When you make $3.13 an hour plus tips and you’re getting tipped $2 on a $35 check, that’s not enough,” said Felicia Pottinger, a server at a local Waffle House.
“When you look at contractors, Waffle House workers and Burger King workers who are asking for the same thing, it just shows you that firefighters are humble, and we just want to be treated like anybody else,” Aaron Mischler said.
Mischler is the president of the New Orleans Fire Fighters Association, which has been pushing City Hall to raise the starting wage for firefighters from $11 an hour to $15 an hour. Their persistence may be paying off, the New Orleans City Council and the Cantrell administration are supporting a proposed pay plan that would raise the minimum wage for all city positions to $15 an hour.
“It really is important in terms of a living wage for our employees and our citizens, and it’s also important because it positions city government to be more aggressive in our recruitment for our positions. It helps us become an employer of choice,” said Amy Trepagnier, Personnel Director at the New Orleans Civil Service Department.
“This is that step forward to get us where we should be and to be more equitable,” Mischler said.
Officials at the New Orleans Civil Service Department said if the proposed pay plan passes, it could be implemented as early as next year. They believe if the city raises its minimum wage, other employers could follow.
Felicia Pottinger is simultaneously hopeful and skeptical in that possibility. She and other members of the Louisiana Movement for Workers Councils rallied at City Hall Wednesday afternoon. They called on local government to use some of the hundreds of millions of Federal COVID relief dollars to help them with issues like sick leave and paid time off to get vaccinated or care for a child who is ill or has to be quarantined.
Felix Allen works at Lowes and said there’s little pay or respect for people on the frontlines.
“Whether it’s McDonald's, Walmart, or Home Depot or Lowe’s, whatever it is, these places are all understaffed and their employees are all overworked. Then you have customers who will come and complain about bad service,” Allen said.
“There are so many people, black and brown, indigenous, women, even white folks who are struggling to make it and we are the ones that keep this city bolstered," Pottinger said.
For doing that, Pottinger said they deserve at least $15 an hour, and they’ll keep fighting for it.