Shared meals and Cost of Living
Prices are still high. My family loves to have others over to share a meal. In this way, we share our gifts. With young kids, this is a play date extended into dinner, which is getting harder to do as household staples in the grocery store and restaurants become more expensive.
When prices rise, your purchasing power decreases when all else is equal. But when your wages increase through a cost of living adjustment or annual raise, your purchasing power can remain stable. Think about if your wages were the same as five years ago. Your choices to buy food, pay for home upkeep, and pay off debt would all be altered.
I have a plan for rising prices for all of Monroe County. I voted to give all employees a minimum 6.0% raise starting in January 2024. This percent increase is indexed to the Midwest region CPI-U 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted. The Council looks to make up for a less-than-robust raise last year and increase that raise to 8.5%.
The plan to address rising prices extends to those earning minimum wage. We added a $0.55 per hour increase on top of the CPI-indexed raise for these employees, meaning that the minimum wage in Monroe County would be over $20 per hour for full-time employees. While not a silver bullet, my vote is a step in the right direction!
Lastly, this plan continually ensures that local wages keep up with inflation by indexing them to CPI-U Midwest, a practice that the County Council has maintained for many years. Higher wages ensure that purchasing power is bolstered to keep up with rising prices across sectors. Increased wages also have secondary effects of more investment in the local economy and the ability to spend time with family and friends over a great meal.
This Peter’s Perspective post is part of a larger community conversation on Wages in Monroe County Indiana that you can see at PeterIversen.org/wages.
If you like these ideas, support the campaign!
If you aren’t sure and would like to talk with Peter more about his Wages plan, schedule a time at PeterIversen.org/contact.
