JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri voters approved increasing the minimum wage to $13.75 in January, but a coalition of businesses hopes to prevent it from going into effect. 

The question on the ballot was Proposition A, raising the state’s minimum wage and guaranteeing sick leave for some workers. The measure passed last week with 58% of the vote in favor, but business groups are hoping to block the implementation without a lawsuit or asking lawmakers to help. 

“We celebrate the strength of Missouri’s economy,” Missouri Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Kara Corches said. “We want to make sure that we continue to have a strong economy, and we are very concerned that this is going to erode that. It’s a very slippery slope when we start mandating business practices. Today, it’s paid sick leave. What could be next?”

It’s a concern for the business community: that business owners could lose their freedom of making their own decisions. The Missouri Chamber of Commerce is among half a dozen groups preparing to challenge Proposition A, which was set to increase the minimum wage from $12.30 to $13.75 in January and then $15 in 2026. 

“Money just doesn’t grow on trees for these businesses, and so the money is going to have to be made up somehow, and usually when we see minimum wage increases, that cost is passed down to consumers,” Corches said. “We are just always going to oppose any type of mandate on business. A business in the bootheel is not the same as a business in St. Louis County.”

The Chamber is joined by the Associated Industries of Missouri, the Missouri Grocers Association, the Missouri Restaurant Association, the Missouri Retailers Association, and the National Federation of Independent Business. The group released a statement last week saying, “Proposition A poses a legal risk for all employers, including those who currently offer paid sick leave by allowing employees to sue their employers for regulating the use of sick leave or investigating sick leave misuse.”

Supporters of the measure say they are confident a judge will side with them if this ends up in court. 

“Proposition A received more votes than Sen. Josh Hawley did, and I don’t think any legislators are turning around and saying well, Josh Hawley was not elected, or we should do something different about that,” Missourians for Healthy Families and Fair Wages campaign manager Richard von Glahn said. “I think they should treat Proposition A with the same level of respect as that.”

Under the measure, employees can start accruing sick leave on May 1, 2025, earning one hour for every 30 hours worked, up to five days for businesses with fewer than 15 employees, and seven days a year for larger businesses. 

Back in May, Missourians for Healthy Families and Fair Wages turned in 210,000 signatures to ask voters to increase benefits for workers. 

“Having guardrails around the economy makes sense for everybody,” von Glahn said. “It’s what allows our communities’ values to be expressed and make sure that workers aren’t exploited.”

Missouri voters previously rejected a minimum wage increase. Voters in 26 states have approved wage increases over the years. 

Von Glahn said Proposition A will increase the minimum for more than 500,000 Missouri workers and guarantee sick leave for 700,000 workers statewide. Government entities, including school districts and other public institutions, will be exempt for both the minimum wage increase and the sick leave requirements. 

“When we talked to business owners, they talked about how policies like this actually can save them money because it reduces turnover, it reduces the spread of contagious disease throughout the workforce,” von Glahn said.

Unlike amendments 2 and 3, also approved by voters, this measure is a statutory change, meaning lawmakers can modify or overturn it without a vote of the people. The coalition of businesses said they will lobby during the upcoming legislative session, which starts in January, for lawmakers to make changes.