New Minimum Wages In the New Year

Minimum wage workers in several states, including Massachusetts, Vermont, and New York will be getting a bit more for their efforts come Tuesday as new pay rates go into effect.

As of January 1, 2019, the Massachusetts minimum wage will rise from the current $11 an hour to $12, as the state steps its way to a previously approved $15 minimum wage by 2023.

Vermont's current minimum wage will jump from $10.50 to $10.78 effective Jan. 1. If 28 cents an hour strikes you as an odd figure, you're not alone. A check of the VT Dept. of Labor's website revealed that unlike many other states which use preset steps like 25 or 50 cents or a dollar, the Green Mountain State bases minimum wage hikes on a cost-of-living adjustment, increasing annually every January 1 "by either 5% or the percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index, CPI-U, U.S.: city average, not seasonally adjusted, whichever is smaller."  By my math, this year's COLA works out to about 2.7%.

VT Gov. Phil Scott (R) vetoed a bill earlier this year that would’ve lifted Vermont’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2024.

Also, according to USA Today, New York utilizes a split system of minimum wages, currently $13 for large employers in New York City; $12 for small employers in New York City; $11 in Long Island and Westchester County; and $10.40 everywhere else.

In 2019 those figures rise to $15 for large employers in New York City; $13.50 for small employers in New York City; $12 in Long Island and Westchester County; and $11.10 everywhere else.  NY is moving towards a $15 minimum wage by 2021.