States with the highest minimum wage
In his State of the Union address, President Obama pressed to raise the hourly rate in stages to $9 an hour in 2015, up from the current $7.25. Find out which states currently have the highest minimum wage.
Financial think-tank 24/7 Wall Street used data from the National Employment Law Project to determine the eight states with the highest minimum wage in the U.S.
Financial think-tank 24/7 Wall Street used data from the National Employment Law Project to determine the eight states with the highest minimum wage in the U.S.
The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 an hour.
As of this year, 18 states have set a minimum wage higher than the federal minimum, according to NELP.
Most of the eight states with minimum wage rates of more than $8 an hour are on the East and West coasts, which generally have higher costs of living.
Some of those states also allow ballot initiatives, enabling voters to cut through gridlock and raise the minimum wage on their own.
8. California -- $8/hour
California's minimum wage increased by 50 cents to $8 an hour in 2008. A bill proposed in the Legislature would raise that to $8.50 and implement automatic increases every year.
7. Massachusetts -- $8/hour
Massachusetts has had a minimum wage of $8 an hour since 2008. Legislation was introduced this year to increase the minimum wage to $10 by 2013, but its status is unclear.
6. Vermont -- $8.15/hour
Vermont's minimum wage increases at the same rate as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the preceding year, meaning an increase of 1.1% in 2011.
5. Connecticut -- $8.25/hour
With a median household income of $66,452 in 2010, Connecticut is one of the wealthiest states in the country, and its minimum wage reflects that.
4. Illinois -- $8.25/hour
Illinois' minimum wage has historically increased along with the federal rate, until 2004, when the state's wage was raised to $5.50 per hour, ahead of the national rate.
3. Nevada -- $8.25/hour
Nevada's minimum wage is $8.25 per hour for those without employer-provided health insurance. For those with insurance, it is $7.25 -- the same as the federal rate.
2. Oregon -- $8.50/hour
Oregon's minimum wage will increase by 30 cents in 2012, which is three times as much as it has increased between 2010 and 2011.
1. Washington -- $8.67/hour
Washington will become the first state to pay minimum wage workers more than $9 an hour in 2012, when its minimum wage goes up by 37 cents an hour.
