Yesterday, Governor Moore announced a minimum wage increase for union workers at Baltimore Washington International (BWI) Thurgood Marshall Airport. He also committed to introducing emergency legislation at the beginning of the 2027 legislative session to raise wages for hundreds of nonunion staffers as well.
“To keep BWI competitive, we believe that employers that serve the airport must make a meaningful increase to its minimum wage with annual increases and paid leave for employees covered by the Secure Maryland Wage Act,” said Governor Wes Moore. “Employers must also provide covered airport workers with a health and welfare supplement to ensure these workers have a path to receive quality, employer-paid health insurance.”
Here’s What Marylanders Are Reading:
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has ordered an immediate increase in the minimum wage for workers directly contracted by the Maryland Aviation Administration at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI), setting the floor at $18 an hour.
Moore announced the change on Labor Day alongside Maryland Transportation Secretary Katie Thomson and leaders of 32BJ SEIU. The directive to the Maryland Department of Transportation covers workers employed through direct MAA contracts and is aimed at some of the airport’s lowest-paid employees.
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Moore said he plans to introduce emergency legislation when the 2027 Maryland legislative session begins to extend the Secure Maryland Wage Act. The law, enacted in 2021, provided wage protections for certain MAA contract workers but did not cover an estimated 700 to 800 BWI employees whose employers contract indirectly with the state agency.
Maryland’s minimum wage for unionized workers at BWI Marshall Airport will be raised from $17 to $18 per hour, Gov. Wes Moore said Monday.
The new rate will affect roughly 120 employees covered by bargaining agreements between their union and the state, according to the governor, who said his administration will seek emergency legislation to expand wages for hundreds of nonunion staffers as well.
“That work takes skill. It takes experience, and that type of experience is deeply hard to replace,” he said. “If BWI is going to compete, it has to compete for workers too.”
With a wave of purple-wearing members of the Local 32BJ Service Employees International Union behind them, state, transportation and labor leaders spoke Monday in Annapolis about the need to better support BWI’s airport workers: people like security guards, custodians and groundskeepers.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced an executive action Monday that increases the minimum wage to $18 an hour for direct state contract employees at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI).
Moore chose the Labor Day holiday to make the announcement, which came during an address at the State House in Annapolis. The governor was joined by union leaders representing the 32BJ SEIU organization, along with workers and Maryland’s Secretary of Transportation Katie Thomson.
Moore said his address aimed to celebrate workers across the state on Labor Day. But he noted the event represented an ironic situation.
“The truth is that all across Maryland, there are countless union members that are currently on the job as we speak, on Labor Day,” he said, especially pointing to nurses, firefighters, EMTs and first responders.
Moore explained that the new minimum wage requirement, which he said was to take effect immediately, will affect BWI workers who hold direct contracts with the Maryland Aviation Administration. This accounts for about 120 workers, including security guards, custodians, groundskeepers and wheelchair agents.
“I am directing the Maryland Department of Transportation to make sure that no airport worker under a direct contract with the Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA) is paid less than $18 an hour,” said Moore.
Contact: Carter Elliott, IV [email protected]