City pay

When Cape Girardeau officials recently announced that their interpretation of last year's overwhelming approval of Missouri's minimum wage meant city workers making less than $6.50 an hour wouldn't be getting any increase in pay, the public responded quickly.

Nearly all the responses indicated most city residents favor paying the new minimum wage, even if it means the city must come up with more than $100,000 to cover the costs.

Cape Girardeau is the only municipality in the state the Southeast Missourian could find that is refusing to accept the new state minimum wage.

It is basing its decision on a narrow interpretation of the language in Proposition B, the minimum-wage proposal on last November's ballot that was approved by 75 percent of Missouri's voters. Under thatr interpretation, the city says it is exempt, even though a casual reading of the wording in Prop B is anything but clear.

The city's stand was curious in one respect. The new Democratic majority in Congress has said repeatedly that it intends to quickly raise the federal minimum wage to a level much higher than Missouri's $6.50 an hour. And the city has said it would comply with the federal minimum wage.

Which means the city has known for some time that it faces the necessity of raising pay for some city workers.

And, without a reduction of minimum-wage employees, the federal pay boost is likely to cost the city closer to $200,000 a year.

Now city officials say they will take another look at the minimum-wage issue and try to find ways to grant pay raises to its lowest-paid employees.

One way to generate more funds for payroll purposes would be to raise fees, which would come in the wake of last April's approval of a change in the city charter to allow fee increases of more than 5 percent without going to voters.

Another option -- one most city officials say they would be reluctant to use -- is to dip into the city's $3.4 million reserves.

The pay issue is likely to be sorted out in the next few days. It's too bad this sorting out didn't take place before the public raised such a hue and cry.