Letter: Epic problems, epic solution
As I commented in one public hearing to the Town Council last year, it is time for Vail to pass a measure to increase the minimum wage required for large employers (with more than 100 full- and part-time employees).
Most small employers — like the HOA of Pitkin Creek — are already paying snow removal workers $25 per hour. The only way this town is going to survive and thrive is to force large employers to pay a living wage. At the current minimum wage, and even at $15 per hour, the town and county are subsidizing large employers by providing public benefits to bridge the gap for underpaid workers. There is no reason for that to continue — assuming there ever was a reason to support that notion. The minimum wage is the root of many issues of epic proportions we face in our community.
If large employers are required to pay a living wage, many of the town and county’s problems will be improved. A living wage is tied to the average housing cost. Higher wages instantly increase the amount of affordable housing without new development, because the calculation of “living wage” is tied to the average cost of the existing housing inventory. Building “affordable housing” is a short-term solution with long-term impacts on our quality of life and the quality of life for our wildlife.
The long-term solution is to increase wages to meet the costs of living in the valley. This also narrows the income gap in our community, and reduces sprawl, long commutes, pollution and traffic in the valley. It also reduces the number of underpaid worker residents who qualify for Medicaid, SNAP, and more, which then allows more money to go to other priorities.
And, unlike Walmart or some other retailer, the largest employers are tied to this community and are not mobile. For example, Vail Resorts cannot move Vail Mountain or Beaver Creek Resort to another location where the local government might be willing to continue to subsidize its operations and benefit the company more than the community.
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So, let’s use MIT’s living wage calculator as a start, adjust for inflation (5.8% increase as monthly average since May 2021) and cost of living increases from 2019 to present, and boldly require Vail Resorts and its shareholders to live up to their “sustainability” and “do good for the local community” values. It is well past the time for local government to set a minimum wage for employers of more than 150 employees that is a livable wage for a family of four with one working adult. In 2019, that should have been $35.47 per hour. In today’s economy, $15 per hour is a poverty wage in our county. Poverty wages for adults mean more children living in poverty. This is an epic problem that must be stopped with epic speed on a local level.
Nina Kazazian
Vail
