Minnesota Raising Minimum Wage Rate

/in , , /by

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

/in /by

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

/in , /by

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.

YouTube video


Minnesota Minimum-Wage Workers About to Get a Raise?

/in , /by
Map of minimum wage rates in the United States...

Map of minimum wage rates in the United States. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Minnesota may see an increase in its minimum wage in the 2013 legislative session. The Minnesota House of Representatives is debating a proposed rate hike to $9.50 whereas the state Senate is considering a more modest rate of $7.50. Democrats control both houses of the state’s legislature making passage of an increase likely, and Democratic Governor Mark Dayton already stated he would sign a minimum wage rate increase into law.

If passed, either increase would be the first increase for Minnesotan minimum wage earners since 2005.

The state’s minimum wage for large employers currently is $6.15 per hour, though many workers automatically receive the higher federal minimum of $7.25 per hour. Minnesota is one of only four states nationwide where the minimum wage on the books is lower than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. Arkansas, Georgia, and Wyoming also have state minimum wages that fall below the federal minimum wage rate.

In a 2012 report, the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry estimated 6.1 percent of Minnesota’s hourly workers were paid $7.25 an hour or less. The Department’s report also found:

  • Adjusted for inflation, the Minnesota minimum fell from $8.36 in 1974 to $6.15 in 2011.
  • Of all Minnesota hourly workers paid $7.25 or less, 45 percent work in food preparation and serving occupations.
  • Those without a high-school degree made up 31 percent of all hourly workers at or below the minimum wage.


Submitted by Chaunce Stanton

Alabama Employers: Know Your Gun Policy Limits

/in , , /by

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley recently signed a gun bill into law that allows employees to have firearms in their cars at work. The law also protects businesses from being sued for any harm resulting from the use of those weapons on company property. The law takes effect August 1, 2013 and will affect employers with locations in Alabama.

The law allows employers to prohibit its employees from carrying firearms while on company property or while representing a company’s interests in the course of business. The law, however, does not allow employers to restrict transportation or in-vehicle storage of lawfully possessed firearms and ammunition in privately owned vehicles. Any person with a valid concealed-carry permit can transport and store loaded weapons in their vehicles – on or off company parking lots and transportation routes.

Even without a permit, a driver in Alabama is allowed to carry an unloaded weapon, as long as it is not readily accessible. Alabama also recognizes concealed-weapons permits with other states.

Alabama is among nineteen states that have enacted “guns-at-work” or “parking lot” laws that limit employers’ right to restrict firearms on company property.