From going on vacation to falling off a benefits cliff: understanding the range of low-wage workers’ perceptions of a union-negotiated wage increase

ABSTRACT

Social workers have long been active in social and political organizing to ensure a living wage. Yet recent social work research largely neglects efforts to raise wages and effective means for organizing to do so. This paper draws on in-depth interviews from a longitudinal study of low-wage hospital workers who formed a union and negotiated annual, incremental wage increases to achieve a $15 minimum wage floor to understand their perceptions of the effects of the initial wage increase. Results show workers have a wide spectrum of perceptions, with many feeling no effect or even a negative effect due to losses in public benefits. A visualization used to aid interpretation of results identifies race and family structure as salient factors, pointing to the role of structural discrimination in experiences and perceptions of wage increases. Given that this workplace, like many other employers and localities, has implemented a $15 minimum wage through incremental raises across time, it is important that social workers be aware of the experiences of workers at each stage of this process. This study examines the impact of the first raise, establishing a framework from which future research can examine how individuals’ perceptions and experiences develop over time.

KEYWORDS:

• Income inequality
• macro practice
• wage advocacy
• labor rights

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by funding from the Heinz Endowments and the University of Pittsburgh Social Service Research Initiative.