Labor & Employment

New York -- The Seattle City Council on Monday unanimously voted to raise the minimum wage in the city to $15 an hour, making it the highest municipal minimum wage in the country. The measure, which takes effect on April 1, 2015, will be phased in over the next three to seven years depending on the size of the business, with a slower process for small businesses.

Hudson's Bay Company more than doubled sales in the first quarter driven primarily by its acquisition of Saks last year.

Retail sales were $1.9 billion, an increase of $971 million from $884 million for the prior year. Consolidated same-store sales increased by 2.8%, with increases of 2.5% at DSG, 2.6% at Saks Fifth Avenue and 15.1% at Off 5th. Digital commerce sales totaled $207 million, reflecting both the inclusion of Hudson's Bay and Lord & Taylor (which together are referred to as “Department Store Group” or DSG) and Saks.

Fort Wayne, Ind. -- Vera Bradley announced that Karen Peters has been named executive VP, retail and wholesale sales.

Peters has 25 years of retail experience including multi-store management and merchandising. Between February 2005 and March 2014, she served as senior VP, director of stores for Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th. Prior to that, she held key management positions with Sears, Target, and Kohl's.

New York – A group director for two Tiffany & Co. stores in Houston has filed a lawsuit alleging the retailer discriminates against African-Americans in hiring and promotions for management and executive-level jobs. A complaint filed by Michael McClure in federal court in New York on May 29 says that McClure is the only African-American holding one of 200 U.S. management-level positions at Tiffany, and that there are no African-American executives in the company.

Burlington, N.J. -- Burlington Stores announced that Thomas A. Kingsbury, the company’s CEO and president, has been unanimously elected as chairman of the board.

“We are excited to elect Tom to chair the board of directors of Burlington Stores,” the board said in a statement. “He has done an outstanding job as CEO since he joined the company in 2008. The growth of the business has been impressive under Tom’s leadership and we look forward to this continuing under Tom’s expanded role as chairman and CEO.”

Finance executive Sven Wehrwein is the newest member of the Quantum Retail Technology board of directors.

The Minneapolis-based retail technology company said Wehrwein’s addition to the board brings growth expertise and knowledge of corporate finance.

New York – Edward H. Finkelstein, former chairman and CEO of the company now known as Macy’s Inc., died of natural causes at his home in Thousand Oaks, California, on May 31. He was 89.

Finkelstein led Macy’s in the 1970s and 1980s and launched concepts including the Aeropostale apparel chain, which was later sold off, as well as several private brands. Finkelstein left the company in 1992 after 44 years, following a bankruptcy filing.

New York -- 99 Cents Only Stores named Christopher Laurence as the company's interim CFO, treasurer and secretary. Laurence replaces Frank Schools, who resigned to pursue other opportunities.

Laurence most recently was CEO of ThreeSixty Group, a product development and sourcing company for consumer product brands and retailers.