A minimum wage worker in Eastern Washington has as much right to a pay increase as a worker in the Puget Sound area. For low-income communities, the minimum wage increase can generate important additional economic activity. The greater the proportion of minimum wage workers in a local economy, the bigger and more positive the economic impact of increasing the minimum wage becomes. Minimum wage workers spend a higher proportion of their income on immediate consumption than higher income workers do. In fact, increasing the minimum wage may have a disproportionately positive impact in rural low-income areas.
Inflation measures the rate of change of prices.
As we live in a national and global economy, inflationary changes originate from global and national decision-making and economic trends and are spread more or less evenly throughout the Washington state economy. Whether you live in Wenatchee or Seattle, energy prices will increase at the same pace. Increasing the minimum wage sends a signal that we encourage businesses that pay their workers a decent wage and discourage businesses which purposely pay poverty wages. Increasing the minimum wage creates a platform for all these elements of business prosperity. NFIB claims that the small business climate is tenuous in Washington state.