Philadelphia City Council has unanimously approved Councilman W. Wilson Goode, Jr.’s Living Wage & Benefits Enforcement Legislation, empowering City Council to bring debarment charges against city contractors for failure to comply with the City’s minimum wage and healthcare benefits standard.

The New Minimum Wage and Benefits Ordinance, which took effect on July 1, requires City-supported employers to pay at least 150% of the federal minimum wage to its employees. It also mandates that if the employer provides healthcare benefits to any of its employees, the employer shall provide each full-time employee healthcare benefits at least as valuable as the basic healthcare benefits that are provided to the employer’s other full-time employees. There is an exemption for small businesses. Employers subject to the ordinance include:

The City of Philadelphia, including all its agencies, departments and offices.

For-profit Service Contractors, which receive or are subcontractors on contract(s) for $10,000 or more from the City in a twelve-month period, with annual gross receipts of more than $1,000,000.

Non-profit Service Contractors which receive or are subcontractors on contract(s) from the City of more than $100,000 in a twelve-month period.

Recipients of City leases, concessions, or franchises, or subcontractors thereof, which employ more than twenty-five (25) employees.

City financial aid recipients. Compliance shall be required for a period of five (5) years following receipt of aid.

Public agencies, which receive contract(s) for $10,000 or more from the City in a twelve-month period.

The Philadelphia Code amendment provides that Council may, by resolution, determine that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a participant, contractor, project developer, or applicant for or recipient of financial assistance has failed to comply with the minimum wage and healthcare benefits standard and should be subject to debarment.