The federal minimum wage for 2022 is $7.25 per hour. Some states and countries have raised their own minimum wages since it has not been increased since July 2009.
What Is The Minimum Wage?
The minimum wage rate can be defined as “the minimum amount of remuneration that an employer is required to pay wage earners for the work performed during a given period, which cannot be reduced by collective agreement or an individual contract.”
In the US, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) establishes a minimum wage for employees in the private sector and in Federal, State, and local governments.
Federal Minimum Wage
The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour.
- $5.15 – Sep 01, 1997
- $5.85 – July 24, 2007
- $6.55 – July 24, 2008
- $7.25 – July 24, 2009
The Federal minimum wage hasn’t gone up in a decade. Some states, cities, and counties are increasing their minimum wage rates based on the cost of living. In those cases, as a business owner or employer, you are required to pay your employees a higher amount.
State Minimum Wage Rates From 2019 to 2023
In 2023, 13 states across the country will increase their minimum wages for workers.
To help you know the minimum wage for your state for 2022, the following table includes current state and federal minimum wage rates, exceptions, and scheduled increases, if any:
State Minimum Wage Rates - 2023
State Minimum Wage Rates - 2022
State Minimum Wage Rates - 2021
State Minimum Wage Rates - 2020
State Minimum Wage Rates - 2019
What states raised the minimum wage in 2022?
According to EPI, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, Washington State increased their minimum wage requirements in 2022.
What states have the lowest minimum wage?
According to the data from the U.S. Department of Labor, Georgia and Wyoming have the lowest state minimum wage requirements i.e. $5.15 per hour if federal regulations do not apply; otherwise, it is $7.25.
What state has the highest minimum wage?
California has the highest state minimum wage at $15.00 per hour, which is applicable if the business has 26 or more employees. However, Washington is the only state that has a minimum wage of $14.49 for businesses of all sizes. California, Connecticut, and Massachusetts will become the top three states with the highest minimum wage for all employees in 2023.
What states have automatic increases (indexing)?
Currently, minimum wages in 18 states (AK, AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, ME, MN, MO, MT, NV, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OR, SD, and WA) are slated for annual changes based on various formulae. Around January 1st, most of these increases take place.
What states have no minimum wage?
Tennessee, South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama have no minimum wage at all. However, the workers receive some protection and they are entitled to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 or $2.13 for tipped workers.
What are the best cities for minimum-wage workers?
According to move.org, the following are the best cities for the minimum wage workers:
- Cleveland, Ohio – $9.30
- Bakersfield, California – $15.00
- Detroit, Michigan – $9.87
- Fresno, California – $15.00
- Tucson, Arizona – $12.80
- St. Paul, Minnesota – $12.50
- St. Louis, Missouri – $11.15
- Minneapolis, Minnesota – $14.25
- Cincinnati, Ohio – $9.30
- Stockton, California – $15.00
What localities have adopted minimum wages above their state minimum wage?
According to EPI, Alameda (CA), Belmont (CA), Berkeley (CA), Birmingham (AL), Chicago (IL), Cook County (IL), Cupertino (CA), Denver(CD), East Palo Alto(CA), El Cerrito(CA), Emeryville(CA), Flagstaff(AZ), Fremont(CA), Hayward(CA), Los Altos(CA), Los Angeles County(CA), Los Angeles(CA), Malibu (CA), Milpitas (CA), Minneapolis (MN), Montgomery County (MD), Mountain View (CA), Nassau Suffolk and Westchester Counties (NY), New York City (NY), Novato (CA), Oakland (CA), Palo Alto (CA), Pasadena (CA), Petaluma(CA), Portland Urban Growth Boundary (OR), Portland (ME), Redwood City (CA), Richmond (CA), San Francisco (CA), San Jose (CA), San Mateo (CA), Santa Clara (CA), Santa Fe City (NM), Santa Fe County (NM), Santa Monica (CA), Santa Rosa (CA), SeaTac (WA), Seattle (WA), Sonoma (CA), St. Paul (MN), and Sunnyvale (CA) have adopted minimum wages above their state minimum wage.
What companies have raised their minimum wage to at least $15 an hour?
According to GBR , Aetna, Amazon, Bank of America, Ben & Jerry’s, Best Buy, Charter Communications, Cigna, Costco, Disney World, Facebook, Fifth Third Bank, Google, JPMorgan Chase, Santander Bank, Starbucks, Target, Wayfair, and Wells Fargo, have raised their minimum wage to at least $15 or more per hour.
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