The District’s large retailer living wage bill has attracted national attention and — now that the D.C. Council has passed it — national condemnation from an organization representing retailers.
David French, senior vice president of government relations for the National Retail Federation, slammed the bill as “flawed and unwarranted” and said the council members who supported it care “more about special interests than their own constituents and communities.”
The legislation is a prime example of “why the District is consistently ranked as one of the worst places to do business in the nation” and a “prime indicator as to why employment remains consistently high for District residents even as it improves in surrounding jurisdictions,” French said in a statement.
“The National Retail Federation, which represents retailers of all shapes and sizes, encourages Mayor Gray to stand firm for job creation and veto this legislation,” he said. “The Mayor’s commitment to economic growth and expansion and a better D.C. is in stark contrast with certain members of the Council.”
French added: “NRF urges the Council to reconsider the short- and long-term implications and impact the bill will have on economic growth, and future retail construction, development and expansion in the District. D.C. should welcome business and jobs, not chase them away.”
Of course, the bill’s supporters would probably argue that the five council members who voted against it cared more about a special interest, Wal-Mart Stores Inc., than about their own constituents and communities. I’ll update with any statements of national support for the living wage legislation, if and when I get them.
