By Robert Higgs
Cleveland Plain Dealer, Jan 4, 2024. Syndicated by Tribune Content Agency News Service.

Higher minimum wages that kicked into effect with the start of 2024 will boost minimum hourly pay in some states as high as $16, benefiting as many as 10 million workers. ... The federal minimum wage, meanwhile, remains at $7.25 an hour, unchanged since 2009. Twenty states, mostly in the South and Midwest, also have that baseline rate as their state minimum wage.

“While the federal minimum wage falls further and further behind the cost of living at...

By Kirstin Garriss, CMG Washington News Bureau
Cox Media Group, January 04, 2024. Ran nationally in multiple Cox TV and radio stations.

Starting this month, millions of workers will get a bump in their paychecks. That’s because more than 20 states are boosting minimum wages. ...

But some entrepreneurs believe higher pay is an investment.

“From my perspective, this is a cost that actually gets you something in terms of recruiting, in terms of retention, in terms of the quality of the work that you put out,” said Aaron Seyedian, owner of Well-Paid Maids. ...

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By Andrew Bloomenthal
Investopedia, January 02, 2024

The federal minimum wage for nonexempt employees in the United States is $7.25 as of 2024. It's meant to be a living wage but this isn’t the case in practice. The hourly rate hasn’t kept up with the cost of living since 1970. ...

The minimum wage has been a political issue since its inception. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in 1933, five years before the first minimum wage became law, that “...by living wages, I mean more than a bare subsistence level—I mean the wages of a...

By Brian Beach
Nebraska Public Media, Jan. 2, 2024

On Monday, Nebraska’s minimum wage increased to $12 an hour, making it the 18th highest state minimum wage in the country and one of 25 states increasing its minimum wage this year. In 2022, Nebraska voters passed an initiative raising the minimum wage from $9 an hour up to $15 an hour by 2026, increasing by $1.50 each year. After that, the wage will be adjusted in accordance with cost of living increases.

Dave Titterington has owned the Wild Bird Habitat Store, with locations in Lincoln...

By Jacob Owens
Delaware Business Times, January 2, 2024

Delaware continued its march toward an eventual $15 minimum wage with an increase of $1.50 an hour on Monday. ...

The bill spurred a contentious debate ... But others, including business owners, said the increase will help attract workers to Delaware with the promise of higher wages, therefore decreasing turnover and allowing Delaware to remain competitive with surrounding states.

Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, an advocacy group, pushed for the hike and organized some local small business owners to push its message here. They included...

By Charlotte Jimenez
Le Soleil de la Floride, January 1, 2024

Selon l’EPI (Economic Policy Institute), l’augmentation des salaires de base, annoncée le 21 décembre dernier, représentera près de sept milliards de dollars en salaires annuels supplémentaires pour environ 9,9 millions de travailleurs. ...

Holly Sklar, PDG de Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, a déclaré le 21 décembre dernier dans un communiqué : « alors que le salaire minimum fédéral reste de plus en plus en retard sur le coût de la vie à seulement 7,25 $ de l’heure, les augmentations des États sont vitales pour...

By Chris McKenna
Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, Jan 1, 2024. Also The Press & Sun Bulletin (Binghamton).

About 1 million New Yorkers who stock store shelves and hold other low-wage jobs will get a pay boost in 2024.

New York is raising its minimum wage in January by $1 to $16 an hour for workers in New York City and the neighboring suburbs of Westchester County and Long Island. In the rest of the state, the hourly minimum is rising to $15 from $14.20, an 80-cent hike — and the realization of a $15 statewide...

By Matthew Fazelpoor
NJBIZ, January 1, 2024

As 2024 rings in, it also marks the crossing of a notable threshold here in the Garden State when the minimum wage increases Jan. 1 to $15.13 per hour. That figure, affecting some 350,000 of New Jersey’s nearly 1.9 million hourly workers, surpasses the $15 per hour goal set into law in 2019 and makes the state one of just a handful to reach that mark. ...

In a press release, Business for a Fair Minimum Wage applauded the 22 states (including New Jersey) that are ringing in...

360 Business Coach, January 2024

As we step into 2024, small business owners face new challenges and opportunities, especially concerning employee wages. With significant changes in minimum wage laws across various states in the U.S., it’s crucial for business owners to stay informed and plan accordingly. This article by 360 Business Coach provides insights and advice to help small businesses navigate these changes effectively. ...

Holly Sklar, CEO of Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, emphasizes that low-wage workers with pay hikes boost the consumer spending essential for businesses. ...

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WBAL NewsRadio 1090 and FM 101.5, Dec 30, 2023

The minimum wage in Maryland will increase to $15 an hour on Monday. ... The timeline was moved to Jan. 1, 2024, when Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed the Fair Wage Act of 2023 into law in April.

LISTEN: WBAL’s Robert Lang speaks with Aaron Seyedian of Well Paid Maids

LISTEN and Read more

By Dee DePass
Minneapolis Star Tribune, Dec 30, 2023

Fresh minimum wage hikes and new sick pay laws will boost the paychecks of some Twin Cities workers starting Monday ... In Minneapolis and St. Paul, the minimum hourly wage will jump to $15.57 an hour for [larger] businesses ... Smaller employers in the two cities don't have to raise their minimum wages until July 1. Minimum wage rates across the state will also jump Jan. 1 to $10.85 an hour for large employers and $8.85 for smaller businesses. ...

Steven Dyme, co-founder and chief executive...

By Casey Mendoza
Scripps News, Dec 28, 2023

At the start of the new year, 22 states and 43 cities and counties are increasing the hourly minimum wage, benefiting nearly 10 million people. And that doesn't only affect workers at major fast food chains or retail outlets; it also includes people who work at small, locally-owned businesses. ...

"I think it gives me a lot benefits in terms of recruiting, in terms of productivity, in terms of turnover," said Aaron Seyedian, owner of Well-Paid Maids.

"The more money our consumers have, the more they'll spend...

By Alex McLoon
KETV 7 (ABC) Omaha, Dec 28, 2023

Minimum wage in Nebraska is increasing to $12 an hour starting Jan. 1, 2024, after a November 2022 vote. ...The minimum wage will increase to $13.50 per hour in 2025 and $15 per hour in 2026. Minimum wage will increase in 2027 based on the cost-of-living increase ...

"I think the minimum wage is the fastest way to put more spending power in people's hands without having to rely on different programs or wealth distribution," RAYGUN owner Mike Draper said.

The clothing business is based...

By Harrington Maury
The Published Reporter, Dec 27, 2023

On the forthcoming Monday, the state of Arizona, along with 21 additional states, is poised to witness a notable augmentation in its minimum wage.

Concurrently, the states of Nevada, Oregon, and Florida, alongside the District of Columbia, are anticipated to institute analogous increases in their minimum wage rates later in the year 2024, as reported by Business for a Fair Minimum Wage. ...

It is noteworthy that numerous companies operating nationwide express a favorable stance towards the prospect of an escalated minimum wage. 

Their support is...

By Zeninjor Enwemeka
WBUR (NPR), Boston, Dec 27, 2023. Also in El Planeta.

In 2023, Massachusetts ushered in the final increase in a "grand bargain" to lift the minimum hourly wage to $15 — one of the highest in the country. The wage floor will remain the same in 2024, but now there's a push to raise it again to $20.

Advocates say the current minimum wage — which took years to achieve — is already outdated and isn't enough for residents to live on. ... Two bills are pending at the State House that...