Tompkins County in the Forefront of the Push for Raising the Minimum Wage to a Living Wage

Here’s why a Living Wage is so important for Tompkins County families. Did you know that one third of of the students in the Ithaca City School District qualify for the federal free school lunch program? That’s means their caregivers do not earn a Living Wage.  More exactly that’s less than $21,000/year for a 2-person family; $26,000/year for a 3-person family; $31,000 for a 4-person family.  In some other Tompkins County school districts, the situation is much worse: In Dryden almost half the students qualify for free or reduced price lunch.  In Freeville it’s over half the students whose family income is so low they qualify.