Nationwide Children's Hospital announced it will raise its minimum wage to $15 per hour in July. The change will be fully implemented by 2020.
Approximately 1,800 employees will benefit from the wage hike. Another 2,000 employees who already make $15 per hour will receive pay raises in proportion to their experiences and positions.
According to a written statement, this is the "first for a central Ohio hospital" and is inspired by discussion among Columbus community leaders for the importance of living wage.
"Just as we are committed to the well-being of our community, we are committed to the well-being of our team at Nationwide Children's," wrote Nationwide Children's CEO Dr. Steve Allen. "This decision is aligned with our mission and commitment to attracting the best employees at every level of the organization. Our new minimum wage will further strengthen Nationwide Children's culture of supporting all employees and their ability to deliver best outcomes to the children we serve."
Ohio's statewide minimum wage is currently $8.55 for non-tipped employees and $4.30 for tipped employees.
Some examples of the positions affected by this increase include, but are not limited to: patient care assistants, housekeepers, environmental services employees, unit coordinators and nutrition services employees.
A spokesman for Ohio Health says the hospital last year set its minimum wage at $12 per hour. The hospital hopes to increase the wage to $15, but they don't have a timeline for when that will happen.
Mount Carmel Health System also says it set a $12 minimum wage last year, and intends to raise that to $15 "within the next few years."
WOSU also reached out to Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center to see if itwill follow suit. The story will be updated if they respond.
