By Hannah Smalley, Advocacy and Education Coordinator

We are proud to announce that TNJFON has been approved as a founding Nashville Living Wage Employer. Nashville Living Wage was founded in 2021 to educate the community about the urgency of providing a living wage to all workers, and certifies local businesses and organizations that pay all employees at least a survival wage.

According to Nashville Living Wage, “a living wage is the MINIMUM amount that a worker must earn to afford his or her basic necessities, without public or private assistance.” In Davidson County, that number is $17.40/hr, or $15.40/hr plus health insurance benefits, as calculated by the 2020 ALICE Report from the United Way of Tennessee.

As so many Nashvilleans know, even that is not enough to achieve financial security. The same United Way report calculates that a stability wage in Davidson County is $32.78/hr. Only with a stability wage can workers reliably afford additional education, buy a home, or save an emergency fund. 

These numbers stand in stark contrast to Tennessee’s $7.25 minimum wage, which has not been adjusted since the U.S. Congress raised the federal minimum wage to that amount in 2009. With inflation, that means a worker earning the same hourly wage and working the same number of hours today is effectively earning $5,000 less per year than their 2009 counterpart.

That simply isn’t enough to live with dignity. Many of our clients come to Nashville seeking economic stability, only to be overworked and underpaid yet again. They deserve better. We deserve better.

Are you an employer? Consider applying for Nashville Living Wage Certification to demonstrate your commitment to fair compensation for your team with a living wage today and a stability wage in the future: