Minimum Wage

On May 25, 2007, Congress passed the first increase in the federal minimum wage in over a decade. This three-step increase will raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 by July 2009. During the extended period of federal inaction, states increasingly took the lead in establishing meaningful wage floors for their workers. Since the last increase in 1997, the number of states with minimum wages above the federal level has gone from six to thirty-three (including the District of Columbia). Even after the federal minimum wage increase is full phased-in, thirteen states will still have minimum wages higher than the federal. Here is a complete examination of the impact of the federal increase on state minimum wage rates. Ten states have taken an important step in protecting minimum wage workers from rising costs by indexing their minimum wages to inflation. Much information on the minimum wage can be found in the EPI Minimum Wage Issue Guide. Below are EARN group reports and links to other important national resources.

Recent EARN Group Reports:

Arizona Children's Action Alliance

• Raising the Minimum Wage--More Value for Arizona Work (August 2006)

California Budget Project

• Indexing the Minimum Wage to Inflation (May 2006)
• California's Minimum Wage (March 2006)
• Minimum Wage Increases Boost the Earnings of Low-Wage California Workers (February 2006)

The Bell Policy Center (Colorado)

• Indexing, inflation, and the minimum wage (October 2006)
• Raising Colorado's Minimum Wage: Who benefits? (August 2006)

Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy (Florida)

• The Florida Minimum Wage After One Year (May 2006)

Voices for Illinois Children

• A State Minimum Wage Increase Would Help 269,000 Illinois Children (November 2006)

Iowa Policy Project

• Raising Minimum Wage Helps Iowa's Poor Families (January 2007)
• A Pay Raise for Iowa? Falling Behind at the Minimum Wage (July 2006)
• Iowa's Minimum Wage: What's at Stake (March 2006)

Kentucky Youth Advocates

• Raising the Minimum Wage: Real Benefits for Kentucky Families (September 2006)

Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center

• Massachusetts' New Minimum Wage: $8 in 2008 (August 2006)
• Facts and Claims on Raising the Massachusetts Minimum Wage (June 2006)
• Income Inequality and the Minimum Wage (June 2006)
• Comparing the Minimum Wage Proposals (June 2006)
• The Regional Impact of an Increase in Massachusetts' Minimum Wage (May 2006)
• The Massachusetts Minimum Wage and "Tipped Employees" (May 2006)
• Minimum Wage Increase Could Help Close to Half a Million Low-Wage Workers: Adults, Full-Time Workers Comprise the Majority of Those Affected (March 2006)
• Inflation Indexing and the Massachusetts Minimum Wage (April 2006)

Michigan League for Human Services

• Facts About Michigan's New Minimum Wage (March 2006)

New Jersey Policy Perspective

• The Adequacy of New Jersey's Minimum Wage (May 2006)

New Mexico Voices for Children

• An Economic Success Story: Job Growth and Poverty Reduction in States that have Raised the Minimum Wage (word doc) (January 2006)

Fiscal Policy Institute (New York)

• New York's 2005-2007 minimum wage increases: Good for the state's workers, good for the economy (January 2007)
• States with Minimum Wages above the Federal Level have had Faster Small Business and Retail Job Growth (March 2006)

North Carolina Budget and Tax Center

• Time for a Raise? Assessing the Impact of an Increase in North Carolina's Minimum Wage (April 2006)
• Raising North Carolina's Minimum Wage Helps Families and the Economy (April 2006)

Policy Matters Ohio

• Room to Grow: Ohio Can Afford a Higher Minimum Wage (September 2006)
• Good for Business: Small Business Growth and State Minimum Wages (May 2006)
• Who Needs a Raise? Potential Impact of a Higher Ohio Minimum Wage (March 2006)

Oregon Center for Public Policy

• New Year's Day Minimum Wage Boost Helps Low-Wage Workers Without Hurting Economy (January 2006)

Keystone Research Center (Pennsylvania)

• Senate Minimum Wage Proposal Offers Little Benefit for PA Workers (2006)
• Few Working Adults Would Benefit From a State Hourly Minimum Wage Increase to Only $6.25 (January 2006)
• New Estimates Confirm that Three-quarters of a Million Pennsylvania Workers Would See Higher Pay with a $7.15 Per Hour Minimum Wage (January 2006)
• Where Pennsylvania Low-Wage Workers Live (January 2006)

Center for Public Policy Priorities (Texas)

• The Federal Minimum Wage Increase and Texas (May 2007)
• Why a Minimum Wage Increase Would be Good for Texas (October 2006)

Economic Opportunity Institute (Washington)

• Economic Opportunity Institute minimum wage resource page

Center on Wisconsin Strategy

• Wisconsin Minimum Wage Facts: Minimum Wage $6.50/hour as of June 1 (June 2006)

Institute for Wisconsin's Future

• Minimum Wage Tool Kit

Links to Minimum Wage National Websites

EPI Minimum Wage Issue Guide

AFL-CIO Minimum Wage Resource Page

Ballot Initiative Strategy Center

Political Economy Research Institute

ACORN

Coalition for Human Needs Minimum Wage Resource Page

Fair Wage Superpage From the Campaign for America's Future web site

Raise the Floor  From the Ms. Foundation for Women web site

Increasing the minimum wage From the Center for Policy Alternatives website

Links to Other Resources

Economists Statement on Minimum Wage

U.S. Department of Labor Website While often several months out of date, this site has links to state department of labor websites and state minimum wage rates.

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