The state has formed a 200-person task force to enforce new minimum-wage requirements, Gov. Cuomo announced Monday.
He dismissed concern from small-business owners that the higher wage would make it more difficult for them to turn a profit.
“We believe a $1.50 increase is negligible and that a small business can pay that increase without a dramatic effect on the small business,” Cuomo said at a Midtown press conference.
In New York City, the minimum wage is now $11 an hour for companies with 11 or more employees, up from $9. Smaller businesses pay $10.50.
On Long Island and in Westchester, the minimum wage is now $10, and across the rest of the state, it’s $9.70.
A phase-in to $15 an hour will be completed by Dec. 31, 2018, in New York City for large businesses, by Dec. 31, 2019, for small ones, and by Dec. 31, 2021, in suburban counties.
Cuomo said there are 730,000 people in New York who are earning minimum wage.
“A lot of workers don’t know that they just got a raise. And they need to know this because they need to make sure that it is in their paycheck. A lot of employers don’t know that the minimum wage went up, and they need to know it also,” Cuomo said.