WASHINGTON, D.C. - The nation’s capitol is the latest added to the list of places in the movement towards higher minimum wages. Washington, D.C. lawmakers have chosen to approve a $15-an-hour minimum wage in a unanimous vote.

Washington is now part of a coalition of areas fighting for higher wages, including California, New York, and cities such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Seattle. As reported by NPR, the D.C.'s current minimum wage is $10.50 an hour, and it was previously set to go up to $11.50 next month under a law enacted in 2014.

The bill will raise the wage gradually, hitting $15 in 2020, with future increases being tied to inflation.

“When I see how much it costs to live in Washington, D.C. — and that cost is only going up — we know that it takes more money for every household to be able to afford to live,” shared Mayor Muriel Bowser on Tuesday. “There are families working day in and day out, sometimes two or three jobs but barely making ends meet.”

While this is a victory for many labor movements and unions, some members of the business sector argue that doubling the federal minimum wage will push employers towards laying off workers or moving to locations with less strict wage standards.

Speaking in D.C. on Tuesday, House Speaker Paul D. Ryan said the city’s decision would “actually do more harm than good in so many instances, because what it does is it prices entry-level jobs away from people.”

However the new law will affect the city’s economics, AndNowUKnow will continue to update you on any new reports.