‘Tucson fight for $15′ campaign aims to raise minimum wage

TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD News 13) - Several Tucson-based nonprofit organizations are teaming up to launch a campaign called the Tucson Fight for $15.

Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, Primavera Foundation, Our Family Services, Southwest Fair Housing Council, People’s Defense Initiative, YWCA Southern Arizona, and others, alongside labor unions including Pima Area Labor Federation have all teamed up for the cause.

Organizers are hoping to collect 30,000 signatures from registered voters in the hopes of bringing a November 2021 ballot initiative that would, over the course of four years, raise the minimum wage inside Tucson city limits to $15.

According to a news release, dozens of volunteers and paid signature gatherers are fanning out across the city every day to meet the 30,000 signature goal by the July 2 filing deadline

This weekend, Tucson Fight for 15 invites the public to sign the petition at the following locations:

Saturday, April 3 at Armory Park (Sixth Avenue and 13th Street), 12 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Sunday, April 4 at Himmel Park (Tucson Boulevard and Second Street), 12 p.m. - 6 p.m.

If passed, the Tucson Minimum Wage Act will mandate a pay raise for approximately 85,000 local workers currently earning the statewide minimum wage of $12.15.

The bill would gradually increase the minimum wage starting on April 1, 2022. Under the proposal, the citywide minimum wage would reach $15 by 2025.