VICTORY! 400,000 Chicago Residents Raise Up

On December 2, 2014, Chicago became the largest city in the country to raise its minimum wage, from $8.25 to $13, and the only city to include domestic workers in its minimum wage legislation. Although Mayor Rahm Emanuel proposed a $9.25 minimum wage, CPD and our partner Action Now fought for a $15 minimum wage to make one of America’s most expensive cities affordable for 400,000 people.

The victory for Chicago residents also extends to tipped wage workers, who will see a $1 raise in hourly wage from $4.95 to $5.95 over two years, indexed to inflation. For hundreds of thousands of Chicago residents who currently take home less than $13 an hour, the minimum wage increase is a huge step towards living with dignity and respect in the Windy City.