Beginning in 2022, millions of Americans may see a rise in their wages as a result of state minimum wage increases.
According to a report released Monday by the worker advocacy group National Employment Law Project, 21 states and 35 cities and counties will boost their minimum wages on or around New Year’s Day (NELP).
Hourly wages will grow to at least $15 an hour in 33 of these regions, which includes the states of New York and California.
During the second half of 2022, four additional states and 22 local authorities will increase their minimum wage rates.
Among these regions are towns and cities in Illinois, Maryland, and Minnesota, with 17 of these towns and cities earning $15 or more per hour on average. According to the analysis, by the end of 2022, two states, as well as 47 cities and counties, would have achieved or exceeded a $15 minimum wage.
The cost-of-living adjustments will cause wages to rise in some of these places, but not all of them.
Annual cost-of-living adjustments and other scheduled increases resulted in wage increases ranging from pennies to a dollar for workers in 20 states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, South Dakota, Vermont, and Washington.
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Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana
In 2021, the state of New York will implement a $15 minimum wage for fast-food employees. As part of a statewide wage order issued in 2016, New York City implemented this minimum wage for all employees in 2019.
The anticipated pay increases, which come at a time when there is a general worker shortage throughout the foodservice and retail industries, could help alleviate the labor deficit and increase purchasing power across the United States, according to economists.
Workers are quitting in record numbers, and labor shortages are becoming an even bigger challenge for retailers who need to maintain their stores manned throughout the busy holiday season.
In October, around 4.2 million employees, or 2.8 percent of the workforce in the United States, departed their employment. The number of people who resigned from their retail positions in October totaled 683,000, representing a 4.4 percent decrease from the previous month.
Despite the fact that this figure was marginally lower than the almost 685,0000 retail workers who departed their positions in September, mass resignations continue to exacerbate labor shortages across the industry.
Following this, as a result, several retailers have increased salary and benefits in an effort to recruit and keep employees — and perhaps also in an effort to motivate them to return to work in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. Others, on the other hand, increased wages as a result of previously announced initiatives.
For example, Macy’s recently announced that it would raise its minimum wage to $15 per hour and that it would implement a tuition benefit program for all salaried and hourly employees headquartered in the United States.
For hourly retail, distribution center, and e-commerce fulfillment center employees at Kohl’s who work through the holidays, a bonus of between $100 and $400 will be given out.