City Rep. Limon proposes higher minimum wage for city contract employees

City Council discussed the minimum hourly wage of both city and contract employees during Thursday’s budget hearing at City Hall.

There is a budget proposal in place to raise the minimum wage of hourly city workers to $10 an hour next fiscal year. There is also a proposal to raise the hourly wage of contract workers, but the latter would be spread out over five years.

The contract worker proposal was introduced by City Rep. Lily Limon, who has consistently raised concerns about low wages for people employed by contractors doing business with the City.

Representative Lily Limon made a tearful plea for the city’s contract workers to be paid $10 an hour sooner rather than later.

According to city officials, many of the companies pay their employees about $7.25 an hour.

Limon faced strong opposition from City Representatives Cortney Niland and Michiel Noe, who believe wages should be set by the free market, not government.

Noe said Limon’s plan would be bad for taxpayers. “We’re voluntarily, that is artificially, raising the price of a contract and saying ‘okay I’m not going to pay for it. The taxpayers are going to pay for this.’

Limon has long said it is hypocritical of the City to promote the idea that El Paso is no longer a low wage city while doing business with companies who pay employees low wages.