Labor committee co-chair tells businesses they “need to pay” for $15 minimum wage, low-wage employer tax

A contentious public hearing before the Labor and Public Employees Committee went late into the night Thursday as lawmakers heard testimony on a number of bills that could have big impacts on hiring in Connecticut. Committee co-chair, Rep. Robyn Porter, D-New Haven, told Eric Gjede of the Connecticut Business and Industry Association that “those who can afford to pay, need to pay.”