NS ORD-1997-013 Living Wage Ordinance

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8 8 Chart 4 Orange County Permanent Employees With Annual Salary Less Than $8.50/Hour All Earn Above$7.50 Department Classification Total Agin CAT Driver 5 Health Community Health Assistant 2 Public Works Custodian 7 Public Works Solid Waste Center Operator 7 Recreation Recreation Program Assistant 1 Sheriff's Department Custodian 1 Sheriff s Department Jail Cook 1 TOTAL 24 At What Level Should A Living Wage Be Established? Establishment of a specific monetary value for a living wage can be approached in many ways. Each community which has enacted';or tried to enact legislation has established a formula, picked a number, or empowered a local commission- and each has arrived at a unique"living wage," ranging from $6.10 per hour to $11.25 per hour. Some calculations have included: • The amount needed to keep a family of 2, 3, or 4 above the federal poverty level • The amount needed to keep a family at a certain percentage(such as 10 percent or 20 percent) above the Federal poverty level • Prevailing wages, similar to the Davis-Bacon requirements • Historical Federal Minimum Wage inflation-adjusted to reflect today's dollar value • Budgeting actual local costs to try to determine the actual salary needed to live locally, including factors for local housing costs Orange County could develop a living wage amount using many different methods. Four different methods are outlined below. Method 1 - Federal Poverty Level One method would be based on the federal poverty level. The 1997 Health and Human Services Poverty Guidelines established the annual earnings needed for a family of specific size to meet the threshold. Chart 5 provides the hourly rate for various size families using 2080 working hours annually, assuming there is a single wage earner.