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Maximum Wage?

Whether you agree with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley's opinion on a 'big box' minimum wage, you can see his point: If your city requires chain-store ...

Whether you agree with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley's opinion on a 'big box' minimum wage, you can see his point: If your city requires chain-store retailers to pay higher wages, it may negatively impact their likelihood of moving to your city.

But now he's proposing something that's a little harder to swallow: He wants a national minimum wage that could not be increased by local governments.

"That has to be increased (nationally) because if we increase ours and no one increases theirs in the suburban area, we're up here and you're down there."

Daley has said that the difference can create an exodus of jobs from Chicago. 

The mayor disagrees on the issue with Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who has already implemented a statewide minimum wage of $6.50 an hour for workers over 18 and $6 for those under 18.  The federal minimum wage is $5.15 an hour.

Daley said he believes he won wide acceptance of the idea among Democrats Thursday, when he spoke with House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), and said he believes some Republicans are beginning to accept the idea.

So he wants to be legislatively hamstrung by the feds? Doesn't this seem unfair to other communities that do want a living wage?

Zach Patton -- Executive Editor. Zach joined GOVERNING as a staff writer in 2004. He received the 2011 Jesse H. Neal Award for Outstanding Journalism
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