Today, Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Health System announced an important step to support the economic wellbeing of employees by adopting an enterprise-wide $15 minimum wage. The change will take effect in line with annual pay increases on July 1, 2021 for university employees and January 1, 2022 for employees of the health system.

The increase announced today will directly benefit more than 6,000 Maryland employees. The university and health system, collectively the largest private employer in Maryland, backed 2019 legislation establishing a phased approach to reaching a state-wide $15 minimum wage, and with this move Johns Hopkins will reach that level four years earlier than Maryland’s law requires.

“We take seriously our responsibility to serve as an engine of opportunity in Baltimore and every community we serve,” said Johns Hopkins University President Ronald J. Daniels. “Paying higher wages to employees supports both them and the local communities in which we live and work.”

Johns Hopkins Health system will also adopt the $15 minimum wage at All Children’s Hospital in Florida, five years ahead of the requirement voters passed via a ballot measure in 2020. Washington, D.C., where Johns Hopkins Sibley Memorial Hospital is located, has already adopted a $15 minimum wage.

“Moving to a $15 minimum wage recognizes the hard work and sacrifices Hopkins employees make every day to advance our mission,” said Johns Hopkins Health System President Kevin W. Sowers. “We are proud to announce our adoption of a $15 per hour minimum wage even sooner than planned.”

The minimum wage applies to all employees, as well as temporary workers, student workers, and contract workers who work full-time on campus. JHU and JHHS have already taken steps to bring many of their workers’ wages up to this level, including campus security officers and food service workers on the university’s Homewood campus in Baltimore.

“The caregivers of 1199SEIU at Johns Hopkins and other facilities have fought long and hard for a $15 minimum wage, said Lisa Brown, Executive Vice President of 1199SEIU. “That’s why we’re excited that Johns Hopkins is adopting the $15 minimum wage earlier than Maryland’s state mandate. We look forward to continuing to work together to create fair wages and improve working conditions in our state.”

This decision reflects Johns Hopkins’ broader commitment to increasing opportunities in the communities of which the university and health system are a part through local hiring, purchasing, and contracting goals set by its HopkinsLocal program established in 2015.

“Johns Hopkins has been an exceptional partner in our mission to gain living wage jobs for Baltimore city residents from some of our most disadvantaged communities. Jobs that have allowed our participants to purchase cars, homes, while paying taxes and sending their children to college.” said Terrell Williams, Co-Director of Turnaround Tuesday, a leadership development program focused on preparing citizens to reenter the workforce and transform their communities. “Our relationship with Johns Hopkins is an example of what happens when community and institution understand their common goal of full living wage employment.”

Over the past five years, the university and health system have hired more than 1,900 people from targeted neighborhoods, far in excess of the program’s goals. Raising the minimum wage will allow JHU and JHHS to further deepen the impact of HopkinsLocal efforts, with benefits for families and neighborhoods across our local economy.

“By taking action to raise the minimum wage now, instead of later, Johns Hopkins is showing a commitment not only to the women who work there, but also to the families and communities those women support,” said Women's Law Center of Maryland, Inc. Executive Director Michelle Daugherty Siri. “We are grateful for Johns Hopkins’ dedication and encourage other employers to follow suit. Economic security is a key component of racial and gender equity, and this is a critical step towards achieving it.”