The DC City Council last week gave final approval to a bill that would force Walmart
and other big-box stores to pay workers no less than $12.50 an hour, rather than the
city’s current minimum wage of $8.25. Reacting to the hike in pay, Walmart has threatened
to scale back or kill six planned stores in DC.
The bill now goes to Mayor Vince Gray. Here’s why he will nix it:
1) Gray personally convinced Walmart to develop stores in the District. The council’s
vote amounts to a basic “bait and switch.” Gray lured Walmart to town, helped negotiate
land deals, and extracted $3.8 million in charitable gifts. The council’s last-minute
salary hike borders on breach of faith. Every year DC politicians take junkets to
the International Council of Shopping Centers to attract major retailers. If the council
vote sticks, the District has seen the last of big-box, brand-name stores.
2) Gray has promised to create jobs and lower unemployment. He’s been very successful,
so far. The District still needs jobs, especially east of the Anacostia River, where
Walmart has planned to open stores. Minimum-wage positions are a necessary path into
the employment stream for many people, especially the many DC residents who have been
out of the workforce for years. The District’s minimum wage is already $1 above the
federal level.
3) Gray knows that neighborhoods east of the Anacostia are retail deserts. DC residents
are tired of heading east to Prince George’s County to buy basic needs, from clothes
and food to appliances and auto parts. They want the inexpensive goods Walmart provides,
and as a resident of Hillcrest, the mayor hears these complaints every day.
4) DC needs Walmart more than Walmart needs DC. “We’re at a point where we don’t need
retailers,” council member Vincent Orange said. “Retailers need us.” Gray knows Orange has delusions of grandeur. Especially
in the District’s eastern wards, retailers have to be convinced to set up shop.
5) Leadership: Walmart building stores east of the Anacostia River is a personal matter
for Mayor Gray. The store proposed for the Skyland Shopping Center would make Gray’s
neighbors happy. He lives a half mile away, and his friends have complained for years
that they need a place to shop for basics. If Gray doesn’t run for reelection, his
bringing Walmart to the city will be a foundation of his legacy. If he does enter
the race, he can run on bringing jobs and stores east of river. It’s a win-win. On
the other hand, if Gray vetoes the bill and can’t get enough votes to fend off a council
override, it will be a lose-lose—for Gray and for the city.
5 Reasons Vince Gray Will Veto the “Living Wage” Bill
The bill proposes raising the minimum wage in the District to $12.50 an hour.
The DC City Council last week gave final approval to a bill that would force Walmart
and other big-box stores to pay workers no less than $12.50 an hour, rather than the
city’s current minimum wage of $8.25. Reacting to the hike in pay, Walmart has threatened
to scale back or kill six planned stores in DC.
The bill now goes to Mayor
Vince Gray. Here’s why he will nix it:
1) Gray personally convinced Walmart to develop stores in the District. The council’s
vote amounts to a basic “bait and switch.” Gray lured Walmart to town, helped negotiate
land deals, and extracted $3.8 million in charitable gifts. The council’s last-minute
salary hike borders on breach of faith. Every year DC politicians take junkets to
the International Council of Shopping Centers to attract major retailers. If the council
vote sticks, the District has seen the last of big-box, brand-name stores.
2) Gray has promised to create jobs and lower unemployment. He’s been very successful,
so far. The District still needs jobs, especially east of the Anacostia River, where
Walmart has planned to open stores. Minimum-wage positions are a necessary path into
the employment stream for many people, especially the many DC residents who have been
out of the workforce for years. The District’s minimum wage is already $1 above the
federal level.
3) Gray knows that neighborhoods east of the Anacostia are retail deserts. DC residents
are tired of heading east to Prince George’s County to buy basic needs, from clothes
and food to appliances and auto parts. They want the inexpensive goods Walmart provides,
and as a resident of Hillcrest, the mayor hears these complaints every day.
4) DC needs Walmart more than Walmart needs DC. “We’re at a point where we don’t need
retailers,” council member
Vincent Orange said. “Retailers need us.” Gray knows Orange has delusions of grandeur. Especially
in the District’s eastern wards, retailers have to be convinced to set up shop.
5) Leadership: Walmart building stores east of the Anacostia River is a personal matter
for Mayor Gray. The store proposed for the Skyland Shopping Center would make Gray’s
neighbors happy. He lives a half mile away, and his friends have complained for years
that they need a place to shop for basics. If Gray doesn’t run for reelection, his
bringing Walmart to the city will be a foundation of his legacy. If he does enter
the race, he can run on bringing jobs and stores east of river. It’s a win-win. On
the other hand, if Gray vetoes the bill and can’t get enough votes to fend off a council
override, it will be a lose-lose—for Gray and for the city.
Most Popular in News & Politics
The Missing Men of Mount Pleasant
Another Mysterious Anti-Trump Statue Has Appeared on the National Mall
Muriel Bowser Defends Her BLM Plaza Decision and Looks Back on a Decade as Mayor
Yet Another Anti-Trump Statue Has Shown Up on the National Mall
Want to Search Donald Trump’s Truth Social Posts? A New Site Is Here to Help.
Washingtonian Magazine
July Issue: The "Best Of" Issue
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
How Would a New DC Stadium Compare to the Last One?
The Culture of Lacrosse Is More Complex Than People Think
Did Television Begin in Dupont Circle?
Kings Dominion’s Wild New Coaster Takes Flight in Virginia
More from News & Politics
I Tried to Train for American Ninja Warrior
Trump Wants to Rename Soccer, the Nationals Chose a Shortstop, and Virginians Are the US French-Fry-Eating Champions
Guest List: 5 People We’d Love to Hang Out With This July
The Washington Nationals Just Fired the Manager and GM Who Led Them to a Championship. Why Has the Team Been so Bad Since?
FBI Building Now on Track to Leave DC After All, Whistleblower Leaks Texts Suggesting Justice Department Planned to Blow Off Federal Court Orders, and NPS Cuts Leave Assateague Island Without Lifeguards
Families of DC Air Disaster Victims Criticize Army’s Response, Trump Settles His Scores Via Tariff, and Police Dog Kicked at Dulles Returns to Work
This DC-Area Lawyer Wants More Americans Betting on Elections
Trump Threatens DC Takeover, Says He’d Run the City “So Good”; Supreme Court OKs Mass Federal Worker Layoffs; and You Should Go Pick Some Sunflowers