These maps show how the minimum wage has become another crack in the country's economic divide

Advertisement
These maps show how the minimum wage has become another crack in the country's economic divide
fight for 15 minimum wage

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Advertisement

Workers protest outside a McDonald's restaurant on November 10, 2015 in Miami, Florida. The protesters are demanding action from state legislators and presidential candidates to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour.

  • Many states have a minimum wage higher than the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour.
  • According to the Economic Policy Institute, 21 states raised their minimum wages at the start of 2020.
  • Here are two maps that show the current minimum wage in every state, and how big the increases were for the states that just raised the wage.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Although the federal minimum wage has stayed stable at $7.25 per hour for more than a decade, several states have stepped up and raised their own wage floors.

Many of those states have passed laws in recent years that increase wages at the start of each calendar year, and many Americans are likely to see a pay raise now that 2020 has begun.

Over the last several decades, the US has become more geographically economically divided. Large cities, especially in big coastal states, have seen dramatic economic growth powered by industries like technology and finance, while regions with big manufacturing sectors have stagnated in comparison. As wages at the bottom rise in some states rather than others, geographic gaps like that could get larger.

Advertisement

The Economic Policy Institute maintains a database of each state's minimum wage and recent changes. According to that report, 21 states increased their minimum wages as of December 31 or January 1.

Here's the current non-tipped minimum hourly wage in each state. Twenty-one states are at the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.

minimum wage state map january 2020

Business Insider/Andy Kiersz, data from Economic Policy Institute

Washington, DC has the highest minimum wage in the country, at $14 per hour.

And here are the increases that took effect last week.

Advertisement
change in minimum wage january 2020

Business Insider/Andy Kiersz, data from Economic Policy Institute

The minimum wage increased by at least $1 per hour in 7 states.

Several states and Washington, D.C. have minimum wage increases scheduled for later this year. On July 1, Oregon, Nevada, Illinois, and Washington D.C. are all expected to raise the wage, and Connecticut is scheduled to follow on September 1.

NOW WATCH: Elon Musk's mother, supermodel Maye Musk, talks about raising successful children and leveling up her career at every age

{{}}