Minimum wage gets a mini increase in some states

Nineteen states, cities and counties are raising the minimum wage this summer, according to data from the Economic Policy Institute.

In Connecticut, it just went up by a dollar to $15 an hour. And in Nevada, it went up by 75 cents to $11.25 an hour.

The federal minimum wage has been the same since 2009: $7.25 an hour.

“Many states, feeling that is too low, have passed legislation to have a higher minimum wage,” said Pamela Loprest, at the Urban Institute. She said many cities have, too. And a number have also instituted cost-of-living adjustments.

“Much as Social Security has a cost-of-living adjustment because you are having to pay more as inflation goes up,” Loprest said.

About 765,000 people will get a raise this summer because of minimum wage increases. Even though they’re small, “Those wage increases are really valuable for low-wage workers who are dealing with the impacts of inflation,” said Sebastian Martinez Hickey at EPI.

Four states and D.C. now have a minimum wage of at least $15 an hour. So do a growing number of cities.

“There are still more than 21 million workers who are paid less than $15 an hour in the U.S.,” Hickey said.

And, he said, even $15 an hour isn’t enough to afford housing and basic expenses almost anywhere in the country.