Just a few weeks after Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. announced increases to its average minimum wage, CEO Brian R. Niccol said Tuesday that it was raising menu prices between 3.5% to 4%.

"We really prefer not to take pricing, but it made sense in this scenario to invest in our employees and get these restaurants staffed and make sure that we have the pipeline of people to support our growth," Niccol said during the virtual Baird Global Consumer, Technology & Services Conference. "And then with that, we've taken some pricing to cover that."

The chain announced in May that it was adding 20,000employees and raising the average hourly wage to $15 by the end of June.

Starting wages at Chipotle range from $11 to $18 per hour with the chain's national average hourly wage hovering around $13, Erin Wolford, Chipotle senior director of External Communications, told FastCasual. By the end of June, however, it will hit $15.

"Hourly rate increases will be determined using a variety of elements, including geographical location and associated factors like the cost of living, as well as job level, tenure, and current hourly rate," Wolford said..

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