Maryland Transportation Contract Workers to Receive Wage Increase

More than 2,000 union and nonunion contract workers at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport and Baltimore Pennsylvania Station, including custodians, will receive wage increases this fall under the Secure Maryland Wage Act, which passed late last month, The Baltimore Sun reports.

The Secure Maryland Wage Act—HB685 and SB107—passed on May 30, 2021. The bill will become effective on October 1 and increases workers’ hourly wages from US$8.50 per hour plus tips to $17 per hour over the next five years until January 1, 2026.

Workers “at a heightened security interest location” will begin making $13.50 per hour on January 1, 2022, with increases each year until reaching $17 per hour in 2026. Additionally, beginning January 1, 2026, employers must also pay a covered employees an additional supplement benefit rate with a value of at least $1 per hour.

Maryland State senator Antonio Hayes and delegate Kriselda Valderrama are the bill’s sponsors, and their goal was to retain and attract experienced workers at transportation facilities with heightened security.

The union representing the workers—Local 32BJ Service Employees International Union (SEIU)—had lobbied for this law for three years.

The bill will also eliminate tipped wages for wheelchair agents who often do not receive any tips.