Nineteen states will raise their minimum wages to ring in the new year for 2026, with most of them reaching a rate of $15 per hour or higher.
Another 49 cities and counties across the country will also be hiking their wage floors on Jan. 1, according to a breakdown by the National Employment Law Project.
Even though the federal minimum wage remains just $7.25 per hour, a majority of states now require employers to pay a higher rate. New Year’s Day is the most common time for states to implement scheduled increases to their minimum wages, thanks to cost-of-living adjustments written into state laws.
The highest state minimums will come to Washington State, at $17.13 per hour; New York, which will mandate $17 in the New York City metro area; and New Jersey, which will require $18.92 for long-term care workers.
The states raising their wage floors on Jan. 1:
Arizona: $14.70 to $15.15
California: $16.50 to $16.90
Colorado: $14.81 to $15.16
Connecticut: $16.35 to $16.94
Hawaii: $14 to $16
Maine: $14.65 to $15.10
Michigan: $12.48 to $13.73
Minnesota: $11.13 to $11.41
Missouri: $13.75 to $15
Montana: $10.55 to $10.85
Nebraska: $13.50 to $15
New Jersey: $15.49 to $15.92 (other rates apply to certain groups)
New York: $16.50 to $17 in NYC metro; $15.50 to $16 upstate
Ohio: $10.70 to $11
Rhode Island: $15 to $16
South Dakota: $11.50 to $11.85
Vermont: $14.01 to $14.42
Virginia: $12.41 to $12.77
Washington State: $16.66 to $17.13
Alaska and Florida are scheduled to raise their wage...
Policy address full of ''false claims''; has no credibility: LoP Satheesan Thiruvananthapuram, Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan on Tuesday strongly criticised the Left government's policy add...