Elections

The Minimum Wage Is Going Up In 4 States

Minimum wage in these states will range from $12 to $13.50 by 2020.

The Minimum Wage Is Going Up In 4 States
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Article by Stephanie Liebergen
SMS
November 9, 2016

The minimum wage is going up in four states.

Washington state's minimum wage will gradually increase to $13.50 per hour by 2020.

SEE MORE: The Wage Gap Between White And Black Americans Keeps Widening

Maine, Colorado and Arizona voted to boost the minimum wage to $12 per hour by 2020.

Washington and Arizona will also give employees paid sick leave.

Under the new law, employees in Washington will accrue at least one hour of sick leave for every 40 hours worked. So a full-time employee could accrue 6.5 days of sick leave over the course of a year.

Arizona employees will earn one hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Accruals are capped at five days per year, unless the employer chooses to allow more.

The federal minimum wage is just $7.25, and it's been stuck there since 2009.

California, New York and Washington, D.C., are already increasing the minimum wage to $15 per hour — the highest in the country.

New York employees will get $15 per hour by Dec. 31, 2018. Washington, D.C., will reach $15 per hour July 1, 2020, and California will reach $15 per hour on January 1, 2022.

Two states, Wyoming and Georgia, have a minimum wage less than the federal level — just $5.15 per hour. So in those states, the federal minimum wage rate applies.