Small business owner braces for minimum wage increase

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Medford, Ore. — Medford business owner Bob Berg is speaking out after the Oregon House votes to increase the minimum wage. He said while some employees may be excited about the change it’s his customers who will be negatively affected, and down the road his business could take a hit.

The bill, passed Thursday, creates a tiered system to raise the minimum wage over six years in three different categories: Portland, rural counties, and elsewhere.

Berg owns Berg’s Baker and Bistro and Eighth and Grape Street Market in downtown Medford. Between the two he has eight employees who he said he pays more than $9.25 an hour, the current minimum wage. He said he’s discouraged by the new legislation and is bracing for the effects.

“My big thing in life is to give people fair pricing and that’s hard when you’ve got the government raising stuff on you all the time,” he said.

Wages will be incrementally increased until 2022 where the baseline would hit $13.50 in Jackson and Josephine Counties, $12.50 in rural counties, and $14.75 in Portland. The bill now heads to Governor Kate Brown’s desk. She’s pledged to sign it. Berg said while employees may be excited it’s the customers who will end up having to pay more because of rising costs. He fears the increase will keep them from coming to spend money at all.

“Everybody’s going to be charging more for their product because of minimum wage so we have to raise our prices,” he said. “We have no choice.”