Vermont Goes In Big with $10.50 Minimum Wage
In a nearly unanimous decision, the Vermont House of Representatives ended the 2014 legislative session with a 132-3 vote on a Bill (H.552) to increase the state’s minimum wage to $10.50 per hour by 2018. The $10.50 rate will give Vermont the highest state minimum wage in the U.S.
The legislation has yet to be signed by Governor Shumlin, but he has expressed his support for a minimum wage increase, although his preference was for an increase to $10.10 by 2017.
Vermont’s new minimum wage rate represents a 20 percent increase over the current rate of $8.73 per hour.
Vermont Minimum Wage to Increase in Stages to $10.50 by 2018
The minimum wage in Vermont will increase in stages beginning January 1, 2016 until it reaches the $10.50 level beginning January 1, 2018. Thereafter Vermont’s minimum wage will increase annually by five percent or the percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Vermont General Assembly’s Back-and-Forth on the Minimum Wage Rate
The House previously had passed a version that raised the minimum wage to a lower rate of $10.10. The Vermont Senate returned that version with mark-up that introduced the $10.50 level, which was then passed by the House.
Both houses of Vermont’s General Assembly reached agreement on the rate that was lower than the minimum wage levels originally introduced in their earliest Bills: $12.00 in the Senate and $12.50 in the House.
Vermont Required Minimum Wage Posting
It’s still early days for the required minimum wage posting to be released by Vermont, but as always, the GovDocs Research Department will continue to monitor for posting revisions. GovDocs Update Program customers will automatically receive the latest posting as part of our Vermont State-on-One poster, Vermont Combined State and Federal poster, or the Vermont Electronic Set.
California $9.00 Minimum Wage Begins July 1, 2014
With the passage of Assembly Bill 10, California minimum wage workers will receive a 12.5 percent raise from $8.00 to the new rate of $9.00 beginning July 1, 2014. California’s minimum wage will increase again January 1, 2016 to $10.00 per hour.
But is California’s Minimum Wage Increase Enough?
The increase, which California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law in September 2013, isn’t enough to create a living wage for California workers, according to California Representative Barbara Lee. She cited “$25, $26 an hour” as the needed rate for Californians to make ends meet.
California holds three of the top 10 most expensive metropolitan areas in the U.S. For example, renting a one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco runs an average $2,200 per month, which is on par with the cost of rent in New York City. A single parent in Los Angeles with two children would need earn an hourly rate of $27.15 to support the family, according to living wage calculations by MIT. What’s the difference between minimum wage and living wage?
California Employers – Are You Ready for the New Minimum Wage?
California employers must display the latest minimum wage along other labor law postings required in the workplace. Employers should update their postings with the latest versions. If you need updated California labor law posters for your workplace locations, you can order them from the GovDocs labor law poster store and save 30% now when you use coupon code CALI2014. Choose from a variety of formats:
-
Two Posters, One Package: California and Federal Laminated Poster Package
-
SAVE SPACE – One Poster: California and Federal Laminated Combined Poster
-
Spanish Version: California Laminated State-on-One Spanish Poster
-
PDF Versions: California and Federal Electronic Poster Package
Minnesota Raising Minimum Wage Rate
The nearly 155% increase moves Minnesota from the bottom four U.S. states with lowest minimum wage rates.
Minnesota’s minimum wage rate will increase in stages beginning in August 2014, eventually reaching $9.50 per hour by 2016. Beginning in 2018, the rate would be indexed to the implicit price deflator to help Minnesota workers’ wage keep up with inflation, but any annual increases would be capped at 2.5 percent of the previous rate.
The state’s current minimum wage is $6.15 per hour, but most businesses use the higher federal rate of $7.25 per hour. Minnesota’s minimum wage had not increased since 2005.
Senator Jeff Hayden, the Senate Bill’s author, said about 315,000 Minnesotans would benefit from the minimum wage increase.
The measure faced strong opposition in the Minnesota legislature. The Senate version eked out a 35-31 win and the House of Representatives voted 71-60. Governor Mark Dayton signed the bill into law April 14, 2014.
Minnesota Minimum Wage Timeline: Phasing In the Increase
Businesses with gross sales of $500,000 or more:
- August 2014: $8.00 per hour
- August 2015: $9.00 per hour
- August 2016: $9.50 per hour
Large business can apply a $7.75 minimum wage rate for a 90-day training wage for 18- and 19-year-old employees, all 16- and 17-year-old employees (even after 90-day training), and employees who are foreign medical graduates working under a J1 visa.
Businesses with gross sales less than $500,000:
- August 2014: $6.50 per hour
- August 2015: $7.25 per hour
- August 2016: $7.75 per hour
All Minnesota Businesses to Index to Inflation in 2018
Beginning in 2018, all wages would increase each year on January 1 by inflation measured by the implicit price deflator capped at 2.5 percent.
Minnesota Minimum Wage Posting Requirements for Employers
Employers will be required to display the new version of the Minnesota Minimum Wage posting. For customers enrolled in the GovDocs Update Program, we will provide the revised posting once it is released.
Lowest State Minimum Wage in the U.S.
Once Minnesota’s minimum wage increase takes effect, three states will retain minimum wage rate lower than the federal minimum wage of $7.25:
- Georgia: $5.15
- Wyoming: $5.15
- Arkansas: $6.25
Minnesota Employers: Get Ready!
Maryland Second State to Raise Minimum Wage to $10.10
Citing efforts to strengthen Maryland’s middle class, Governor Martin O’Malley signed into law SB 331, which increases the minimum wage in Maryland to $10.10 in stages by 2018.
- January 1, 2015: $8.00 per hour
- July 1, 2015: $8.25 per hour
- July 1, 2016: $8.75 per hour
- July 1, 2017: $9.25 per hour
- July 1, 2018: $10.10 per hour
The move puts Maryland at the top of the nation’s highest paid minimum-wage workers. Connecticut, which recently increased its minimum wage rate, will reach the $10.10 level by 2017.
Democratic Control and the Federal Minimum Wage
Maryland and Connecticut both are led by Democratic Governors and Democratic majorities in their state legislatures, only two states of 13 others have similar Democratic control. The legislation correlates to President Obama’s larger campaign to push the Federal minimum wage to $10.10 before the end of his second term.
Maryland Minimum Wage Increase Affects Postings
Employers in Maryland will need to display the current minimum wage posting in each year the rate changes. The State has issued the 2014 Maryland Minimum Wage and Overtime Law fact sheet, which is available as part of the GovDocs Maryland Posting Package. Each Maryland compliance package (printed poster or PDFs) includes workplace postings required for Maryland employers.
Connecticut Tops States with $10.10 Minimum Wage
Effective January 2017, Connecticut minimum wage workers will receive the highest state minimum wage rate in the U.S.
The Connecticut General Assembly passed legislation raising the State’s current $8.70 per hour minimum wage in each of the next three years to $10.10 in 2017.
- 2014: $8.70
- 2015: $9.15
- 2016: $9.60
- 2017: $10.10
Governor Daniel Malloy signed the legislation March 27, 2014. Similar state minimum wage rate increases are also being considered in Maryland, Massachusetts, Hawaii.
In a statement from the White House, President Obama took the opportunity to use Connecticut’s new minimum wage rate to promote his own push for raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour.
I support these efforts, and I commend Governor Malloy for his leadership. But to truly make sure our economy rewards the hard work of every American, Congress must act. I hope Members of Congress, governors, state legislators and business leaders across our country will follow Connecticut’s lead to help ensure that no American who works full time has to raise a family in poverty, and that every American who works hard has the chance to get ahead.
