Five million low wage workers just got a raise

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The federal minimum wage is set at $7.25 per hour, giving a full-time worker an annual salary of less than $15,000. That’s hardly a living wage anywhere in the country, and many states and cities, prodded by community organizations, faith groups, and labor unions, have moved to boost their minimum wage to a more reasonable level. CBS reports that five million workers in 20 states will receive a raise January 2019 thanks to those actions. Some highlights from the past year:

  • The Massachusetts legislature voted to bump the state minimum wage from $11 to $12 Jan. 1 2019, followed by annual increases that will bring it to $15 per hour by 2023.
  • Voters in Missouri voted 62-38 for Proposition B, which increased the state minimum wage from $7.85 to $8.60 in 2019, and schedules subsequent increases to reach $12/hour in 2023.
  • Arkansas voters approved an increase from $8 in 2018 to $8.50 per hour today, and to $11 per hour by 2021.
  • In New York City fast-food workers and employees of businesses with 11 or more people saw their minimum hourly pay jump from $13 to $15 with the new year. That will have New York City joining Seattle and San Francisco as the major American cities where the “fight for $15” has won the day.

A 2017 survey of Catholic Conference Directors and State AFL-CIO presidents by the Catholic Labor Network and Georgetown’s Kalmanovitz Initiative found that raising the minimum wage was a high policy priority for both groups. Want to see what’s happening in your state and region? Visit the Employment Policy Institute’s Minimum Wage Tracker.