Workers in 22 states and dozens of localities will see a wage hike on New Year’s thanks to cost-of-living adjustments baked into minimum wage laws.
In all, 65 cities, counties and states will hike their wage floors at the start of 2024, the majority of them hitting at least $15 per hour, according to an analysis by the National Employment Law Project (NELP), a group that advocates for higher minimum wages.
Another three states and 22 local jurisdictions will boost their minimums later in the year, including 15 that will set a floor of at least $17 for some workers.
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Yannet Lathrop, a researcher and policy analyst who authored the NELP analysis, said new ballot initiatives and legislative campaigns are percolating in at least nine states, including efforts to raise the minimum wage to $18 in California and $20 in Massachusetts.
“In 2024, we are likely to see more wins,” said Lathrop.
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“You can’t leave policies like the minimum wage to employers because they are at liberty to do these things,” Lathrop said. “This is a labor standard, not just a matter of what the market dictates. Whether the labor market is tight or not… that policy is there for the protection of workers.”
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Surveys typically show broad support for boosting the wage floor, with two-thirds of respondents often backing such moves in polls, including many conservative voters. Minimum wage ballot referendums have managed to sail through even in red states where governments are reluctant to put mandates on employers.
That’s why Lathrop is bullish on any 2024 wage referendums succeeding.
“If you put it in the form of a ballot initiative, they probably will pass it,” she said.
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