UMMS raises minimum wage to $15 an hour
The University of Maryland Medical System announced Friday it is hiking its minimum wage up to $15 an hour, giving a bump in pay to about 5% of its employees.
The move benefits approximately 1,500 employees, both full- and part-time nonunion workers, starting Sept. 12, the hospital system said in a news release.
“Investing in our team members is an investment in our future and in our communities,” said Dr. Mohan Suntha, UMMS’s president and CEO, in the release. “We are committed to providing equitable pay for our team members and investing in the people who carry out our mission every day. Our System has embarked upon a very purposeful effort to become a destination employer for top talent by fostering an engaged, inclusive and diverse workforce.”
UMMS is one of the largest private employers in Maryland, with 13 hospitals and more than 29,500 employees and 4,000 affiliated doctors working throughout the state.
“The decision to increase our minimum hourly wage is just one step in a broader, ongoing effort to ensure we are constantly evaluating team member compensation and making adjustments where necessary,” said Kate McCann, senior vice president and chief human resource officer for UMMS, in the release. “We understand the need to continuously evolve our practices to attract and retain the absolute best talent for our System and will continue to do so.”
Back in July, University of Maryland Faculty Physicians Inc., in charge of clinical practices at the University of Maryland and a partner of UMMS, raised its minimum wage to $15, UMMS said in the release.
UMMS’ move matches that made in May by Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Health System, the largest private employer in Baltimore, to raise its minimum wage to $15, starting July 1 for university employees and Jan. 1 for health system workers.
Others have also moved to boost minimum wages to $15 per hour, ahead of Maryland’s legal timeline of boosting the state minimum wage to $15 by 2025, including Morgan State University and such private employers as Amazon, Costco, Target and Walmart.