DENVER – The Secretary of State’s office announced this morning that an initiative designed to increase Colorado’s minimum wage to $12 per hour by 2020 has qualified for this November’s ballot.

Colorado voters will now decide the measure’s fate. Countless studieshave demonstrated the severely harmful effects of across-the-board minimum wage hikes, particularly to those for whom the policy seeks to help.

In fact, the results of increasing the minimum wage are largely negative. Seattle’s recent experiment with a minimum wage hike has led to fewer jobs created, as businesses find themselves reluctant to hire additional entry level workers in the face of a government-controlled price increase. 

Kelly Maher, executive director of Compass Colorado, release the following statement regarding today’s development:

“Forcing a minimum wage increase onto the backs of American businesses both big and small will have one primary effect: the elimination of countless entry level positions.

“When you walk into McDonalds and place your order at a kiosk, take note that the machine replaced someone’s job. Should a minimum wage increase pass in Colorado, thousands of such positions will be eliminated as businesses adapt to the new regulation. 

“This is big government at its worst, as it hurts the little guy it intended to help. For the sake of low-wage workers, Colorado voters should reject this terrible policy in November.”

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