WASHINGTON — The minimum wage increased in eight states effective Jan. 1, boosting the incomes of more than 1.4 million low-wage workers in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont and Washington.
The state minimum wage in these states rose between 28 and 37 cents per hour—an extra $582 to $770 a year for a full-time worker—as a result of state laws that require the minimum wage to keep up with inflation, says the National Employment Law Project.
More than 1 million workers have been directly impacted as the new minimum wage rates exceeded their hourly pay, and 400,000 more have seen a raise as pay scales were adjusted upward to reflect the new minimum wage, according to an analysis of government data by the Economic Policy Institute.
Eighteen states and the District of Columbia have minimum wage rates above the federal level of $7.25 per hour, which is approximately $15,000 per year for a full-time minimum wage earner.
Washington state has the highest minimum wage at $9.04 per hour. Georgia and Wyoming, at $5.15 per hour, have the lowest.
There are no minimum wage laws in Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and South Carolina, according to the Department of Labor.
