The earliest living-wage ordinance was passed in Baltimore in 1994. Inc. The pies were a small thank-you to the staff, a little bonus for a job well done.
Many companies offer such perks, small but important reminders that employees are appreciated.
But Sterling Ball, president of Ernie Ball, has taken employee appreciation to a whole new level. Calculate what a minimum livable wage would actually be for his full-time employees. Unswayed by the increase, Ball called a meeting of his employees and told them he would be raising his minimum wage to a living wage for all full-time employees. Two weeks before Christmas, the increase went into effect for more than 70 of Ernie Ball's 226 employees. I've lived on the Central Coast since the 1970s, and the cost of living has really gone up.