Town of Enfield Endorses Push for a Countywide Living Wage

The Enfield Town Board  has called on the Tompkins County Legislature to move toward establishing the Living Wage as the Minimum Wage for all employees working within the county borders.  The vote took place at the Enfield Town Board meeting on Wednesday, June 14th.

The Town of Enfield  is the fifth local government body to heed the call of the Tompkins County Workers’ Center (TCWC) which has been organizing to mandate the county’s Living Wage of $14.34 as the new Minimum Wage. Both the Town and the City of Ithaca as well as the Towns of Caroline and Dryden previously also voted to also endorse a County Living Wage. Together these locales who support this measure comprise approximately 71% of the County’s population.

Says Enfield Town Board Member, Becky Sims, of the newly-passed Resolution: “We as a community can no longer accept wages that leave hardworking people unable to support themselves nor their families; anyone who works full time should not have to rely on external subsidies to meet their basic needs. Enfield residents in particular are affected by sub-living wages, highlighted by the fact that 73% of the students at Enfield Elementary qualify for free or reduced lunch, the highest of any school in Tompkins County.”