KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Minimum wage will increase in Missouri after voters made their voices heard on Proposition A.
With 97% of precincts reporting, the Associated Press said the measure passed with 57.7% of the vote.
The passage means the minimum wage will increase to $13.75 per hour on Jan. 1, 2025. Then, in 2026, Missouri’s minimum wage will increase to $15 per hour.
Additionally, Prop A will require all employers with more than 15 employees to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked.
Governmental entities, political subdivisions, school districts and education institutions are exempt from the change.
The passage of Prop A does not impact taxes.
Ahead of Election Day, KSHB 41 heard from those for and against Prop A.
Those against Prop A said it could potentially hinder what small businesses can offer employees.
“On the surface, that sounds like yes, that sounds like a simple vote. But when you dig down into the details, it’s very cumbersome for a small business to enact this type of legislation,” Buddy Lahl, CEO of the Missouri Restaurant Association, previously told KSHB 41’s Caroline Hogan.
However, those for the initiative said paid sick leave could be the difference between suffering and stability.
“I know that missing a day of work would leave me and my three girls homeless," Terrence Wise, board member of the Missouri Workers Center, told KSHB 41 reporter Lily O’Shea Becker. “I could've stayed home, got healthy, and still been able to take care of my family, and that's some choice no father should ever have to make.”
Tuesday night, supporters of Prop A spoke with KSHB 41's Caroline Hogan.
Joni Wickham, of Missourians For Healthy Families & Fair Wages, said those for Prop A saw it as "very common sense."
"Anytime you have the type of grassroots support that we have seen over the past several months with Prop A — over 135 organizers, over 500 Missouri-based businesses in support of Prop A — anytime you have that type grassroots support, you feel really really good," Wickham said.
Workers expressed that paid sick leave will help them worry less about whether they can afford to take a day when they are ill, which Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas said can make a "world of difference for keeping workers, for attracting workers."
"Today is a day when you can say, 'You know what, I'm happy about what Missouri is doing,'" Lucas said.