CLEVELAND (AP) - Backers who proposed phasing in a $15 minimum wage in Cleveland have withdrawn their petition to get the issue on the ballot after the governor signed a bill blocking municipalities from raising the local minimum wage beyond Ohio’s rate.
Supporters of the Cleveland proposal had gathered enough signatures to put it before voters this May, but they withdrew the petition this week.
Activists with the group that pushed the proposal say the recent legislation impedes cities’ home-rule authority and left them no choice but to withdraw the issue.
Cleveland City Council President Kevin Kelley says that he’d support an effort to increase the rate statewide above the current $8.15 per hour. But he says raising the minimum in only one location puts cities at odds in keeping or attracting employers.
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