By Karen Gaudette Brewer
US News & World Report, Dec. 30, 2019
... The minimum wage – stuck at $7.25/hour at the federal level since 2009 – will rise in 22 states, including Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Missouri, New Mexico and Washington. ... Expect more movement on pay in the coming months as states strive to help the lowest-paid workers better afford the soaring cost of housing, healthcare, and child care. Three additional states – Connecticut, Nevada and Oregon – and Washington, D.C., will boost theirs later in 2020, and a national effort is underway led by groups such as Business for a Fair Minimum Wage and the National Employment Law Project to gradually raise the federal minimum wage to $15/hour by the middle of the new decade.
"Businesses that pay low wages may save on immediate payroll, but they experience the significant expense of higher turnover, low morale and a less productive workforce. Raising the minimum wage is a vital investment in businesses and our economy," Margot Dorfman, CEO of the U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement. ...