Higher wages for lowly paid workers in US: more than meets the eye?

Washington

AFTER years of turning a deaf ear to pressure, US businesses are digging into their pockets to improve the lot of the lowest-paid workers, but also their own images.

Faced with a mounting campaign to address a growing gap between the rich and the poor, and complaints that low wages leave workers dependent on state handouts, some of the largest US employers have announced sweeping wage increases in recent weeks.

After department store Walmart and clothing chain Gap said that they would raise worke…