Opinion: A $15 minimum wage would hurt those it’s meant to help
4 years, 1 month ago

Opinion: A $15 minimum wage would hurt those it’s meant to help

CNN  

Editor’s Note: Nathan Mayo is membership director for the True Charity Initiative. This claim sounds reasonable, but it is founded on two unspoken assumptions — that the poor currently work and that they will continue to work once higher minimum wages take effect. Second, many who are currently poor and working will be forced out of work by a higher minimum wage. The multiyear phase-in of the proposed minimum wage hike gives large employers time to automate away many jobs. The Congressional Budget Office projects 1.4 million jobs will be lost from a $15 national minimum wage.

Poverty Jobs Minimum Wage Working Poor  workers  opinion  wage  help  minimum  15  meant  poverty  jobs  living  working  poor  lost  work  hurt

History of this topic

California's minimum wage soars in 2025: What workers need to know
2 months, 4 weeks ago

California's minimum wage soars in 2025: What workers need to know

India Today  

Good news for workers in California: The state has introduced a significant increase in the minimum wage. While $16.50 is the new statewide minimum, many cities and counties across California have opted to push the bar even higher. Here's a snapshot of how some local minimum wages stack up: San Francisco and Berkeley are leading the pack with a minimum …

Workers in these states just got a pay raise
Trending News
2 months, 4 weeks ago

Workers in these states just got a pay raise

CNN  

CNN — The corks have been popped, the calendar pages turned and a day that promised fresh starts also brought with it some pay bumps for millions of Americans. “These additional earnings are critical for ensuring workers don’t lose ground due to rising prices, but the minimum wage level may still be too low, especially if the minimum wage was …

21 states are getting minimum wage bumps in 2025
2 months, 4 weeks ago

21 states are getting minimum wage bumps in 2025

NPR  

21 states are getting minimum wage bumps in 2025 toggle caption J. Scott Applewhite/AP Minimum-wage workers in 21 states will see a bigger paycheck come the new year. Five states are bumping up the statewide minimum wage through previously adopted legislation, and two states — Nebraska and Montana — are making changes after voters passed ballot measures. Sponsor Message With …

21 States To Raise Minimum Wage For 2025
3 months ago

21 States To Raise Minimum Wage For 2025

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING Millions of workers can expect a raise in the new year as state and local governments around the country increase their minimum wages. Looming minimum wage increases, as compiled by EPI: The federal minimum wage is just $7.25 per hour and prevails in any state that doesn’t mandate a higher minimum. The city recently approved an ordinance …

Retail expert issues warning as nearly two dozen states hike minimum wages in 2025 - see the rate for all
3 months, 3 weeks ago

Retail expert issues warning as nearly two dozen states hike minimum wages in 2025 - see the rate for all

Daily Mail  

Twenty-three states will raise their minimum wages in 2025 - a move some experts warn could drive up prices. Fast food workers are traditionally on minimum wage pay packages across the US However, other experts take a more sympathetic view of the increases, arguing those on minimum wage face the harshest economic conditions. Economist Dante DeAntonio of Moody’s Analytics also …

California voters reject measure that would have raised minimum wage to nation-high USD 18 per hour
4 months, 1 week ago

California voters reject measure that would have raised minimum wage to nation-high USD 18 per hour

Live Mint  

Sacramento, Nov 20 Voters in California have rejected a ballot measure that would have raised the state minimum wage to USD 18 per hour by 2026, the highest in the country. The current minimum wage rates are USD 16 per hour for most workers and USD 20 in the fast-food sector. The health care sector will eventually see its minimum …

California voters reject measure that would have raised minimum wage to nation-high $18 per hour
4 months, 1 week ago

California voters reject measure that would have raised minimum wage to nation-high $18 per hour

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Voters in California have rejected a ballot measure that would have raised the state minimum wage to $18 per hour by 2026, the highest in the country. The current minimum wage rates are $16 per hour for most workers and $20 in the fast-food sector. The health care sector will eventually see its minimum wage reach $25 …

Proposition 32 was just rejected. In blue California, why did the minimum-wage boost fail?
4 months, 1 week ago

Proposition 32 was just rejected. In blue California, why did the minimum-wage boost fail?

LA Times  

A worker stocks grocery items at Northgate Market in Los Angeles. “It’s too much, too fast for the industry to absorb.” California had a recent real-world case study in raising the minimum wage to consider, which may have factored into voters’ decision-making: In April, the state’s fast-food workers saw their pay jump to a minimum of $20 an hour, an …

Prop. 32, measure to increase minimum wage to $18 an hour, trails in early polls
4 months, 3 weeks ago

Prop. 32, measure to increase minimum wage to $18 an hour, trails in early polls

LA Times  

Proposition 32, which would have raised the minimum wage to $17 immediately for larger employers and to $18 starting in January 2025. A measure to increase California’s minimum wage to $18 was trailing according to early polling results as of Tuesday night but remained too close to call. Early results showed a slight majority of voters statewide opposed Proposition 32, …

California's Minimum Wage to Reach $18 an Hour: A Heated Debate
5 months ago

California's Minimum Wage to Reach $18 an Hour: A Heated Debate

CNN  

California voters will decide this election whether to increase the state's minimum wage to $18 an hour. The measure, known as Proposition 32, would raise the threshold to $17 for the rest of 2024 and then to $18 in January for employers with more than 25 workers. Smaller employers would have to pay a minimum of $17 next year and …

Arizona and Massachusetts to Decide on Minimum Wage for Tipped Workers
5 months, 1 week ago

Arizona and Massachusetts to Decide on Minimum Wage for Tipped Workers

Associated Press  

Two states will decide in November whether to allow businesses to pay tipped workers, like food servers, bartenders and bellhops, less than the minimum wage as long as customer tips make up the difference. In Arizona, Proposition 138 would allow tipped workers to make 25% less than the regular minimum wage, while in Massachusetts, One Fair Wage is proposing to …

Should the minimum wage be lower for workers who get tipped? Two states are set to decide
5 months, 1 week ago

Should the minimum wage be lower for workers who get tipped? Two states are set to decide

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “You have no security when …

Column: The latest info on California’s $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers — higher pay, no job losses and minimal price hikes
5 months, 3 weeks ago

Column: The latest info on California’s $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers — higher pay, no job losses and minimal price hikes

LA Times  

McDonald’s prices haven’t significantly risen since California raised its fast-food minimum wage to $20 an hour on April 1. Gavin Newsom on the state’s $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers Two new analyses of the actual wage and price impacts of the $20-per-hour minimum have appeared this month. Fast-food employment in California rose after April’s minimum wage increase, often faster …

Endorsement: Yes on Proposition 32. California’s minimum wage needs a boost
5 months, 4 weeks ago

Endorsement: Yes on Proposition 32. California’s minimum wage needs a boost

LA Times  

California has an affordability crisis, with millions of people struggling to get by as prices for housing, groceries, gasoline, utilities, child care and other necessities skyrocket. The measure would increase the state’s $16-an-hour minimum wage — which is set to rise to $16.50 on Jan. 1 under current law — to $18 on Jan. 1 for companies with 26 or …

Editorial: The federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is poverty pay. It’s time to raise it
6 months, 4 weeks ago

Editorial: The federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is poverty pay. It’s time to raise it

LA Times  

It’s been 15 years since workers earning the federal minimum wage got a raise. That is poverty pay, and an increase to the federal minimum wage is long overdue. In 2016, he said he wanted to raise the federal rate to at least $10, but later said minimum wage hikes should be left to the states, which is effectively what’s …

Federal Minimum Wage Goes 15 Years Without An Increase
8 months, 1 week ago

Federal Minimum Wage Goes 15 Years Without An Increase

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING The Great Recession had just formally ended, Barack Obama was entering only his seventh month in the White House and the Black Eyed Peas were atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “I Gotta Feeling.” That’s what was happening in America the last time the federal minimum wage was increased on July 24, 2009 — the last of …

It has now been 15 years since the federal minimum wage rose to $7.25
8 months, 1 week ago

It has now been 15 years since the federal minimum wage rose to $7.25

NPR  

It has now been 15 years since the federal minimum wage rose to $7.25 toggle caption Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images The most recent hike to the federal minimum wage occurred on July 24, 2009, back when former President Barack Obama was still in his first year in office and the Black Eyed Peas topped the Billboard charts. According to the Bureau …

The shocking state of the restaurant industry: ‘We can’t afford to be open. We can’t afford to be closed.’
10 months, 2 weeks ago

The shocking state of the restaurant industry: ‘We can’t afford to be open. We can’t afford to be closed.’

LA Times  

In October, Lauren and Peter Lemos locked the doors of their Chinatown sandwich shop for what they thought would be the last time. Gavin Newsom signed AB 1228, the new California law that increased minimum wage for fast-food chain workers by nearly 25%, bumping hourly pay to $20 for restaurant locations with more than 60 outposts in the U.S. “Gas …

Government pushes for minimum wage increase to keep pace with inflation
1 year ago

Government pushes for minimum wage increase to keep pace with inflation

ABC  

In short: The federal government has called for the minimum wage to keep pace with inflation to ensure real wages do not go backwards The federal government has called for the minimum wage to keep pace with inflation to ensure real wages do not go backwards The government says its tax cuts were designed to be in addition to a …

Will Labor's tax cuts be dragged into a minimum wage increase debate?
1 year, 2 months ago

Will Labor's tax cuts be dragged into a minimum wage increase debate?

ABC  

Some of the country's lowest-income earners are branding a call to limit the minimum wage increase to account for changes to stage 3 tax cuts "disgusting" and questioning why they should be subject to different conditions. The Australian Industry Group has asked the Fair Work Commission to reduce the size of this year's wage increase by the amount of the …

Minimum-wage workers in these California cities are getting a raise in 2024
1 year, 3 months ago

Minimum-wage workers in these California cities are getting a raise in 2024

LA Times  

Gavin Newsom signs the fast-food bill, surrounded by fast food workers at the SEIU Local 721 in Los Angeles, in September. Workers at fast-food restaurants and in minimum-wage jobs can expect a pay bump soon, courtesy of higher wage floors adopted by California lawmakers and more than two dozen cities across the state. In California, the minimum wage is currently …

Truss-backed economists say minimum wage is ‘destroying jobs’ and call for cut
1 year, 4 months ago

Truss-backed economists say minimum wage is ‘destroying jobs’ and call for cut

The Independent  

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Commission co-chairman Douglas …

Pay rise comes for New Yorkers, but some chafe at compromise
1 year, 11 months ago

Pay rise comes for New Yorkers, but some chafe at compromise

Associated Press  

ALBANY, N.Y. — A deal to raise minimum wages in New York would keep the state near the top of the list of places with the highest base pay for low-paid workers, but the raise amount is disappointing some labor activists who had hoped for a bigger bump. The minimum hourly wage would rise to $17 in New York City …

Push in states for $20 minimum wage as inflation persists
2 years ago

Push in states for $20 minimum wage as inflation persists

Associated Press  

ALBANY, N.Y. — Just years after labor activists persuaded a handful of states to raise their minimum wage to $15 per hour, workers initially thrilled with the pay bump are finding their hard-won gains erased by inflation. A bill in New York would raise the state’s minimum wage to $21.25 by 2026, and then adjust it each year going forward …

Measure to hike California’s minimum wage to $18 fails to qualify for November election
2 years, 8 months ago

Measure to hike California’s minimum wage to $18 fails to qualify for November election

LA Times  

California voters will not get a chance in November to vote on whether to increase the minimum wage to $18 an hour. The minimum wage initiative was not among seven measures that had enough valid signatures to qualify for the general election ballot by Thursday’s deadline, according to the California secretary of state. California’s minimum wage for all employers is …

WA workers on minimum wage to get 5.2 per cent pay rise to help with cost of living
2 years, 9 months ago

WA workers on minimum wage to get 5.2 per cent pay rise to help with cost of living

ABC  

The minimum wage in Western Australia will increase by 5.25 per cent, giving the state's lowest paid workers an extra $40.90 per week, following a decision by the WA Industrial Relations Commission. Key points: The 5.2 per cent wage hike is below Perth's 7.6 per cent inflation rate WA is experiencing record low unemployment The minimum wage in WA will …

Who will benefit from a higher minimum wage? Women and younger workers
2 years, 9 months ago

Who will benefit from a higher minimum wage? Women and younger workers

ABC  

The national minimum wage will increase by $1.05 next month, to $21.38 an hour. Slightly above inflation, for the time being The Fair Work Commission says the national minimum wage will increase by 5.2 per cent from 1 July. The FWC says workers are considered "low-paid" if they earn the national minimum wage rate or award classification levels below the …

Inflation triggers California minimum wage increase in 2023
2 years, 10 months ago

Inflation triggers California minimum wage increase in 2023

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s minimum wage will jump to $15.50 per hour next year, Gov. “But it’s clear that we face a lot of headwinds: gas prices remain high, food prices are high because of inflation.” California lawmakers voted to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour in 2016, but the increase was phased in over several years. But …

California’s minimum wage will rise to $15.50, triggered by soaring inflation
2 years, 10 months ago

California’s minimum wage will rise to $15.50, triggered by soaring inflation

LA Times  

California’s minimum wage for large employers stands at $15 an hour. “If high inflation sustains” beyond this summer, Bosler said, “it’s possible that there will be another jump by another 50 cents in the future years.” California’s current $15 minimum hourly wage for large businesses is the nation’s highest, according to federal data. Hours before state officials released their new …

L.A.’s minimum wage to rise to $16.04 in July
3 years, 1 month ago

L.A.’s minimum wage to rise to $16.04 in July

LA Times  

A restaurant worker talks to diners on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles in 2021. Los Angeles’ hourly minimum wage will rise from $15 to $16.04 on July 1, officials said Thursday. Mayor Eric Garcetti, who pushed to raise the minimum wage in 2015, said Thursday the wage increase set to go in effect in July “is the latest reason to …

How will California’s workplace laws change in 2022? More protections are coming
3 years, 3 months ago

How will California’s workplace laws change in 2022? More protections are coming

LA Times  

Heading into 2022 — and a potential third year of the COVID-19 pandemic — California officials faced a familiar-feeling dilemma. Labor advocates point to new measures taking effect in January to toughen enforcement of workplace health and safety rules, outlaw piecework in the garment industry and rein in unsafe speed quotas at warehouses. “The pandemic created a new consciousness that …

Should California have a $18 minimum wage? Voters may get to decide
3 years, 3 months ago

Should California have a $18 minimum wage? Voters may get to decide

LA Times  

California voters could get to decide whether the state minimum wage goes up to $18 an hour, at a time when rising prices and living costs are eating into workers’ household incomes. It’s overdue for $18.” He said the time is right to push for a higher minimum wage because the pandemic highlighted how many Californians working full-time jobs still …

Restaurant paying living wage mocks hiring struggle claims: ‘It’s a cheap labour shortage’
3 years, 4 months ago

Restaurant paying living wage mocks hiring struggle claims: ‘It’s a cheap labour shortage’

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. The TikToker who goes by the …

$15 wage becoming a norm as employers struggle to fill jobs
3 years, 8 months ago

$15 wage becoming a norm as employers struggle to fill jobs

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The signs and banners are dotted along suburban commercial strips and hanging in shop windows and restaurants, evidence of a new desperation among America’s service-industry employers: “Now Hiring, $15 an hour.” It is hardly the official federal minimum wage — at $7.25, that level hasn’t been raised since 2009 — but for many lower-skilled workers, $15 an hour …

‘An economy that works for all’: Calls to raise minimum tipped wage from $2.13 for first time since 1991
3 years, 9 months ago

‘An economy that works for all’: Calls to raise minimum tipped wage from $2.13 for first time since 1991

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The federal minimum wage for US workers who rely on …

The real reason employers can’t hire enough workers (opinion)
3 years, 9 months ago

The real reason employers can’t hire enough workers (opinion)

CNN  

Editor’s Note: Jill Filipovic is a journalist based in New York and author of the book “OK Boomer, Let’s Talk: How My Generation Got Left Behind.” Follow her on Twitter. CNN — As life in the United States tiptoes back toward something resembling Before Times, many employers are facing an unexpected problem: they can’t hire the workers they need. Think …

McDonald’s raises minimum pay at corporate locations as workers in 15 cities plan strikes for $15 hourly wage
3 years, 10 months ago

McDonald’s raises minimum pay at corporate locations as workers in 15 cities plan strikes for $15 hourly wage

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors …

Amazon plans to raise wages for 500,000 workers
3 years, 11 months ago

Amazon plans to raise wages for 500,000 workers

CNN  

New York CNN Business — Amazon has announced that it will raise wages for more than 500,000 workers — but it’s not planning to increase its $15 per hour minimum wage. In light of a current effort to hire for tens of thousands of jobs across its customer, fulfillment, delivery, package sortation and fulfillment, Amazon moved up its annual fall …

Biden to sign $15 minimum wage for federal contract workers
3 years, 11 months ago

Biden to sign $15 minimum wage for federal contract workers

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} President …

Opinion: Black women delivered for Biden. Now it’s time for Congress to deliver on a $15 minimum wage
3 years, 11 months ago

Opinion: Black women delivered for Biden. Now it’s time for Congress to deliver on a $15 minimum wage

CNN  

Editor’s Note: Rebecca Dixon is executive director of the National Employment Law Project. Black women helped deliver the presidency and the Senate to the Democrats, who ran on the promise of a $15 an hour minimum wage, among other things. Raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour — and eliminating the abysmal $2.13 federal subminimum wage for tipped …

Opinion: The first minimum wage and the battle for $15
4 years ago

Opinion: The first minimum wage and the battle for $15

CNN  

Editor’s Note: Thomas Balcerski teaches history at Eastern Connecticut State University. However, last week, eight moderate Democrats joined with Senate Republicans to oppose using budget reconciliation to raise the minimum wage – a move the Senate parliamentarian had previously ruled against. The recent attempt to raise the minimum wage through budget reconciliation misses a key point from the passage of …

Minimum wage hike all but dead in big COVID relief bill
4 years ago

Minimum wage hike all but dead in big COVID relief bill

LA Times  

Activists appeal for a $15 minimum wage near the Capitol in Washington on Thursday. Democrats’ efforts to include a minimum wage increase in their $1.9-trillion COVID-19 relief bill seemed all but dead Monday as Senate leaders prepared to begin debate on their own version of the House-passed aid package. Four days after the chamber’s parliamentarian said Senate rules forbid inclusion …

GOP senator rejects $15 minimum wage saying he once earned $6 an hour, or $23 with inflation
4 years, 1 month ago

GOP senator rejects $15 minimum wage saying he once earned $6 an hour, or $23 with inflation

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Republican …

Costco To Raise Minimum Wage To $16 An Hour: 'This Isn't Altruism'
4 years, 1 month ago

Costco To Raise Minimum Wage To $16 An Hour: 'This Isn't Altruism'

NPR  

Costco To Raise Minimum Wage To $16 An Hour: 'This Isn't Altruism' Enlarge this image toggle caption Joe Raedle/Getty Images Joe Raedle/Getty Images Costco plans to edge up its starting wage to $16 an hour starting next week, CEO W. Craig Jelinek said on Thursday, revealing plans that would propel his company ahead of most of its retail competitors. Sponsor …

Senate Can't Vote On $15 Minimum Wage, Parliamentarian Rules
4 years, 1 month ago

Senate Can't Vote On $15 Minimum Wage, Parliamentarian Rules

NPR  

Senate Can't Vote On $15 Minimum Wage, Parliamentarian Rules Enlarge this image toggle caption J. Scott Applewhite/AP J. Scott Applewhite/AP Updated at 9:27 p.m. ET Senate Democrats will not be forced to confront an internal political battle over increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 following a decision by the primary keeper of Senate rules. The Senate parliamentarian ruled that …

COVID-19 bill must lose $15 minimum wage hike, Senate parliamentarian rules
4 years, 1 month ago

COVID-19 bill must lose $15 minimum wage hike, Senate parliamentarian rules

LA Times  

Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, left, works beside then-Vice President Mike Pence during the certification of Electoral College ballots at the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6. The Senate parliamentarian has dealt a potentially lethal blow to Democrats’ drive to hike the minimum wage, deciding that the cherished progressive goal must fall from a massive COVID-19 relief bill the party is …

AOC calls Republicans’ $10 minimum wage pitch ‘legislated poverty
4 years, 1 month ago

AOC calls Republicans’ $10 minimum wage pitch ‘legislated poverty

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has shot down a pitch from Republican lawmakers …

"This is unacceptable": Democrats enraged by Joe Manchin's plan to cut $15 minimum wage hike to $11
4 years, 1 month ago

"This is unacceptable": Democrats enraged by Joe Manchin's plan to cut $15 minimum wage hike to $11

Salon  

This article originally appeared at Common Dreams. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia on Monday said he will push an amendment to slash the $15 federal minimum wage proposal in the emerging coronavirus relief package to $11 an hour, an idea that progressives immediately rejected as an "unacceptable" attempt to weaken a popular and long-overdue pay raise for tens …

Democrats Face Make-Or-Break Moment On Minimum Wage In Next COVID-19 Bill
4 years, 1 month ago

Democrats Face Make-Or-Break Moment On Minimum Wage In Next COVID-19 Bill

Huff Post  

Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi faces her first major test in the new Congress in the push to pass a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill that is President Joe Biden's top priority. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images WASHINGTON — Democrats are fast approaching a make-or-break moment on establishing a national $15-an-hour minimum wage and providing more COVID-19 relief, with the …

$15 minimum wage debate: Everything you need to know
4 years, 1 month ago

$15 minimum wage debate: Everything you need to know

CNN  

CNN — House Democrats have included a minimum wage hike in their latest Covid relief bill, although a ruling from the Senate parliamentarian means it can’t be included in the final package. Because so many states have their own, higher minimum wage, relatively few American workers make the federal minimum wage. More than half of states – 29 – have …

Discover Related