A Run For The Border Could Pay Off For Some In Idaho
How far will people drive to make $1.35 more an hour?
In Idaho, where the minimum wage matches the federal minimum of $5.15 an hour, some businesses located near the Washington border are concerned that low-wage workers will cross state lines for a job where the recently increased minimum wage means workers can earn more.
Kathryn Tacke, a labor market analyst for Coeur d’Alene Job Service, said businesses in Post Falls and even Coeur d’Alene might see some labor drain as word of the $6.50 an hour minimum wage in Washington gets out.
“It might impact employers in North Idaho,” she said, “especially those close to the border, in their ability to recruit and retain employees.”
After analyzing commuting costs, Tacke found that the current Idaho-Washington wage disparity makes the commute worthwhile to some Idaho workers. She said a raise of 50 cents to 80 cents an hour is all that is required for a net increase in pay for full-time employees.
Last year, the 55-cent disparity between the Idaho and Washington minimum wages wasn’t enough to cause an exodus of minimum wage workers from Idaho. But that may change as the wage gap widens.
“It’s getting to a point where it is worth it to make the commute for some employees,” Tacke said.
So far, however, Idaho business owners said they haven’t noticed current employees leaving jobs in Idaho for jobs in Spokane County.
Kerri Thoreson, executive director of the Post Falls Chamber of Commerce, said she hasn’t heard Chamber members there complain that they are losing workers.
“At this point,” she said, “it’s not something that I have any indication from our business owners that it is on the front burner.”
At the Prime Outlets in Post Falls, Manager Ed Adamchak also said he hasn’t heard from store managers that the minimum wage disparity is causing a labor shortage.
Lois Wechsler, general manager at Cavanaughs Templin’s Resort, said it’s too early to predict how the Post Falls hotel’s work force will react to the prospects of higher-paying jobs across the border. She hires the bulk of the resort’s seasonal employees in the spring.
“It will definitely have an impact,” she said of Washington’s $6.50 minimum wage, “but it’s too early to tell how much of an impact.”