RESULTS: Minimum wage advisory passes in Burlington

Burlingtonians overwhelmingly supported a $15 minimum wage on Tuesday.

The ballot item was approved 5004-1618.

Activists hoped a strong showing of support in Burlington would encourage the Legislature to pass a bill raising the state wage. Organizers for the local movement Fight for $15 pushed in January to have the advisory question included on the ballot.

MORE RESULTS:Chittenden County Town Meeting Day

Burlington's City Councilors overwhelmingly supported placing the advisory question on the ballot, with the exception of Kurt Wright, the Republican from Ward 4, who voted against it. Dave Hartnett, who was an independent but is now a Democrat from the North District, recused himself. Wright also represents Burlington in the Vermont House.

Both the Vermont Senate and House are considering bills that would raise the wage. However, Gov. Phil Scott has voiced his opposition to the idea.

"I believe that artificially inflating it to a $15 an hour standard just ratchets up the cost of living throughout, that this will just put a lot of businesses at risk," he said at an early February press conference. "The small mom and pops that we hold near and dear to hearts won't be able to come up with that kind of money."

At the same news conference, he left the door open to a potential veto of the bill.

The state minimum wage is currently $10 an hour after a recent increase from $9.60. It will increase to $10.50 in 2018. Mathew Barewicz, the economic and labor market information chief for the state Department of Labor, said it's hard to know the exact number of people in the Burlington metropolitan area who rely on jobs that pay less than $15 an hour. He estimated there were about 35,000 to 40,000 jobs that fell into the category.

Contact Jess Aloe at 802-660-1874 or jaloe@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @jess_aloe.