The below is not an argument for or against the wages paid just curious about whether someone could live on $13.50/hour in the area
assuming 40 hours a week and 52 weeks a year and to see what data I can find on the staff. Obviously we don't know the exact hours provided and staff wages beyond the data lacking news report.
So I went down the rabbit hole a bit. Looks like she employs the following jobs and I attached the reported hourly average per job for the state:
Stylist&Colorist: - $20/hour
Massage Therapist - $32/hour
Esthetician - $25/hour
Endermologie Tech - (Couldn't find)
Lash Tech - $24/hour
Makeup Artists -$36/hour
Nail Tech -$21/hour
Spa Attendant - $14/hour
Spa Coordinator - $15/hour
It seems likely she employs a number of people that make more than the US median wage income when divided by hours or roughly $16/hour. Looks like this is in King Country however which is $33.26/hour median. But that includes Seattle and this particular city is on the very edge of King county, butting up against Snohomish Co which is $26.44/hour. It's too bad I couldn't find the numbers of each position she employs to know how close she gets to that but just averaging those hourly rates (Which seem in line with what was reported) would mean she pays in line with the median pay for Snohomish Co.
For the ability to live on $13.50/year in the area:
Looks like rent in the area can be had at about $650-750 a bedroom
Phone and utilities sounds about right
You can get a civic in the area with just under 100,000mi for just under $4,000 or a car payment of $117 a month for a 36 month loan
FDA food plan cost estimates: $168/mo. Unfortunately the FDA links to the contents of their food plans are currently broken
Gas price seems to be around $100/mo given the average miles driven and gas price for the state but a reliable car like a civic or corolla should be well under $100/mo maintenance
So $1525 might be a little high (pretty good job of being in line though without spending the unnecessary amount of time that I did) - probably closer to $1350 but I don't have data on healthcare plans and couldn't find easy renter's insurance estimates.
Washington doesn't have a state income tax and effective tax rate for ~$30,000 is going to be pretty low. Take home should still around $25,000. Taking your number of $1525/mo that still leaves $560 extra a month or $730 extra a month from my numbers for things like social life, hobbies, a nicer car etc.
As an aside I've also been curious if proximity to Universities depresses wages for low skill jobs due to an abundance of people looking for part time work. The Spa is less than 3 miles from the University of Washington Bothell which is not a huge school at 6,000 students but thats also walking distance
Various sources:
esd.wa.gov
zillow.com
citidata.com
autotrader.com
www.fns.usda.gov
Find out how much you'll pay in Washington state income taxes given your annual income. Customize using your filing status, deductions, exemptions and more.
smartasset.com
*I also appriciate that a 401k is listed as a benefit. Based on my assumptions on business side this is not often something you would see offered by such a small company in SE MI. YMMV by region obviously