NYC to raise minimum hourly wage for 50K workers to $15

NEW YORK -- Officials say many city employees in New York City will earn at least $15 an hour by the end of 2018.

Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to make the announcement Wednesday in Manhattan. The raises will cover 50,000 workers.

De Blasio, a Democrat, has said he wants to raise the city's minimum wage to $15 an hour for everyone, but that the state must agree.

The announcement comes days after Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he was gradually increasing the minimum hourly wage to $15 for many state university workers. He said he wants state lawmakers to do the same for all workers.

De Blasio's plan would affect about 20,000 unionized workers and 30,000 employees of outside organizations whose services are paid for by the city.