labor lawAdivision of labor law center

Employers have already been warned that the state minimum wage will increase with the new year in Oregon, Washington, Florida, New Mexico, Vermont, Colorado, Arizona, Missouri, Montana, Ohio and Connecticut.

However, employers in other states also have to contend with minimum wage increases this year.

Even if an employer has no minimum wage employees, each increase means the employer must update his or her minimum wage posters. By law, employers are required to display a variety of labor law posters prominently in the workplace. Failure to do so can result in fines, penalties and citations.

On July 1, 2009 the Illinois minimum wage will increase by 50 cents, from $7.50 to $8.00 per hour. This is the final step in a 3-tiered increase introduced by the now-infamous Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich.

The Kentucky minimum wage increases by 70 cents, from $6.55 to $7.25 on July 1, 2009, under a law passed last year. Also on that date, the Pennsylvania minimum wage increases from $7.15 to $7.25 per hour, an increase of 10 cents.

On July 24, 2009 the federal minimum wage increases by 70 cents from $6.55 to $7.25 per hour. This is the last in a three-step increase under the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007, which raised the federal minimum wage from $5.15 per hour to $7.25 per hour over a period of a little more than two years.

A number of states, by statute, increase the minimum wage whenever the federal minimum wage is higher. These include Idaho, Indiana, Maryland, Texas, Utah, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma and Virginia.

In other states, the state minimum wage will not increase. However, most employers will be covered by the federal minimum wage, and will be required to pay the higher rate. These include Delaware, Maine, Florida and Alaska.

Five U.S. states have no minimum wage. In those states, most employees are covered by the federal minimum wage. These states include Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee and South Carolina.

In a few other states, the state minimum wage will remain lower than the federal minimum wage. The few employers who are not covered by the federal law, can legally still pay the lower state rate. These states include Wisconsin ($6.50), Wyoming ($5.15), Georgia ($5.15), Arkansas and Minnesota. The lowest state minimum wage is still in Kansas, at $2.65 per hour.

Last 10 posts by Derrick

• H1N1 Quarantine Issues - November 18th, 2009
• Wage and Hour Violators Targeted - November 6th, 2009
• Pennsylvania Child Porn at Work Law - October 21st, 2009
• Timeline for E-Verify - September 30th, 2009
• Minnesota Minimum Wage - September 11th, 2009
• State Minimum Wage Update - September 9th, 2009
• Virginia Minimum Wage - August 10th, 2009
• New Jersey Minimum Wage Increase 2009 - July 13th, 2009
• Idaho Minimum Wage Increase 2009 - July 3rd, 2009
• North Carolina Minimum Wage Increase - June 17th, 2009