labor lawAdivision of labor law center

 On July 24, 2009 the Maryland minimum wage increases from $6.55 to $7.25 per hour, along with the federal minimum wage. That is an increase of 70 cents, and an increase of $2.10 in just over two years.

 

By statute, when the federal minimum wage increases, the Maryland minimum wage does so, as well.

 

The other states on the same schedule are Nebraska, Kentucky, Idaho, Indiana, North Carolina, North and South Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, and Utah.

 

State minimum wage laws vary widely and dramatically, which is one reason why employers should always have an updated state minimum wage poster displayed, as the law requires.

 

More than half of the states in the U.S. have rates that are above the federal minimum. The rest are either equal to or below the federal level. Some states have a cost of living increase and some do not.

 

Five states do not have minimum wages. They are Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, and South Carolina. Employers in those states who are not covered by federal minimum wage laws could legally pay their workers 10 cents an hour. Whether or not they would find anyone willing to work for that rate is another matter.

 

Among the states that have established minimum wage laws, the hourly rates vary by almost $6 an hour. At the high end of the chart is Washington State, with a minimum of $8.55 hourly. At the very bottom is Kansas, with a pay rate of $2.65 an hour. The difference between the two states is $5.90 an hour.

 

In second place is Oregon, at $8.40. The Vermont minimum wage is $8.06 per hour. Massachusetts and California tie with Connecticut for fourth at $8.

 

States with cost of living increases generally base those increases on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for urban and clerical workers. Statistics used are sometimes regional and sometimes national.

 

Florida is the most recent state to establish such a policy. Its minimum wage went from $6.79  to $7.21 per hour  in 2009 when it provided for a cost of living hike.

 

Others include New Mexico, Kentucky, Delaware, Oregon, Iowa, Washington, Arizona, Colorado, Vermont, Missouri, and Montana.

 

There are 27 states (as well as D.C.) with rates above the federal minimum, including, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Rhode Island, West Virginia, Ohio, and Hawaii.

 

 

 

 

 

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