Mary Fallin signs ban on minimum wage increase in Oklahoma

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) signed a bill into law Monday that passes a statewide ban on raising the minimum wage and prohibits cities from legislating to establish mandatory employee benefits like vacations or sick leave. Backers believe raising the minimum wage would hurt businesses, while opponents view the law as retaliation against grass roots organizers gathering signatures in the capital to raise the city's minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10. After Fallin signed the bill, her office released a statement claiming that "most minimum-wage workers are young, single people working part-time or entry-level jobs." Fallen said, "Mandating an increase in the minimum wage would require businesses to fire many of those part-time workers. It would create a hardship for small business owners, stifle job creation and increase costs for consumers." "And it would do all of these things without even addressing the goal of reducing poverty," she added. But a major paper published last year, covered by the Washington Post found that economists agree that raising the minimum wage actually reduces poverty.