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 The New York Wage Board voted unanimously for the increase, which
would cover some 180,000 workers statewide and affect fast-food
chains with 30 locations or more in the United States.
The three-member board was formed at the behest of Governor Andrew
Cuomo in May after the state legislature turned down his proposals
for minimum wage increases for most workers.
Its decision does not need legislative approval, but requires
approval by the state labor commissioner, which is expected.
“This is going to help hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers, but
this is going to do something else," said a beaming Cuomo at a
jubilant rally in New York City celebrating the vote. "Because when
New York acts, the rest of the states follow."
 With the federal minimum wage at $7.25 an hour since 2009, labor and
religious groups have pressed state and local governments to enact
pay raises as their hopes dim for an increase by the
Republican-controlled U.S. Congress.
Last month, Los Angeles set its minimum wage to rise from $9 an hour
to $15 by 2020, affecting some 600,000 workers.
Seattle and San Francisco also have increased minimum wages in
recent years.
A statewide wage increase for fast-food workers as opposed to
city-based would be a first, said the National Employment Law
Project, a nonprofit advocacy group.
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The rise to $15 an hour marks a major step from New York's current
minimum wage of $8.75.
"I feel fabulous," said Harley Perez, 19, who work 30 hours a week
at a fast-food restaurant but depends on food stamps to get by.
"I won't have this chokehold with bills, and I won't need to depend
so much on the government for help," she said.
Sixty percent of New York's fast-food workers rely on some form of
public benefit to supplement their earnings, according to the Fiscal
Policy Institute.
The increase would be phased in, taking effect by the end of 2018 in
New York City and by July 1, 2021, in the rest of the state.
Business groups and other critics slammed the decision as
discriminatory because it singles out one industry, and legal
challenges are expected.
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