Moore announces $1 per hour wage increase for BWI workers, commissions SU study

Salisbury, Md. – On Monday, Gov. Wes Moore announced a minimum wage increase to $18 an hour for direct Maryland Aviation Administration contract workers at Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. Moore also announced his intent to introduce emergency legislation at the beginning of the 2027 legislative session to build a pathway to raising the minimum wage for indirect contract workers at BWI Airport by extending and reforming the Secure Maryland Wage Act.

“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,” Moore said. “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.”

The governor also alleged that the last study to review wages was done “wrongly” and “skewed the data” to make it appear as though lower waged workers were better off than they actually were. Moore said his administration has commissioned a study from Salisbury University’s Business, Economic and Community Outreach Network to conduct a new evaluation of wages benefit recruitment and retention at BWI.

“Because we need to know what workers are actually earning. And we need to make sure that they’re actually earning what their work and their labor actually deserves,” he said.