Walmart in this tiny town just beat Seattle’s new minimum wage
RAISE IT: If Seattle wants higher wages, maybe it could look for new economic opportunities.
By Dustin Hurst | Northwest Watchdog
A tiny town in the midst of North Dakota’s oil boom raised local wages without forcing the issue through city ordinances or state laws — looking at you, Seattle.
In fact, the evidence of the salary spike comes from the much-demonized Walmart, a corporation under fire from leftists who believe the company doesn’t pay enough.
Take a look at this picture shared on Twitter this weekend:
The Bakken Oil Boom in One Photo – Check Out the Wages at the Walmart in Williston ND pic.twitter.com/IfwH7l7zI9
— Mark J. Perry (@Mark_J_Perry) June 9, 2014
North Dakota is experiencing an incredible rush thanks to fracking, a new drilling technology unlocks that shale oil pockets deep in the Earth.
Just how profitable is the oil boom? Consider that North Dakota enjoyed a 2.6 unemployment rate last month, compared with the 6.3 percent national average.
In Williams County, North Dakota, the epicenter of the oil boom, the unemployment rate is an astounding 0.9 percent.
Watchdog.org’s Rob Port noted earlier this month the state now has more job openings than workers to fill the positions.
What’s the takeaway here? “The energy sector is the strongest sector of the US economy, and is bringing wealth, prosperity, and high-paying jobs to places like western North Dakota and south-central and western Texas,” wrote Mark J. Perry, a senior analyst with the American Enterprise Institute.
Seattle, which just enacted a plan to raise its local minimum wage to $15 an hour, could learn a lesson from North Dakota.
Contact: Dustin@Watchdog.org
