Thousands of Maine workers are getting a pay raise as the state's minimum wage increases with the new year.
The extra $1.05 an hour is an 8-percent pay raise for hourly workers making minimum wage.
The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 an hour, which is well below the poverty level.
As of Jan. 1, Maine’s minimum wage went up to $13.80 an hour statewide and $14 an hour in the City of Portland due to local and state laws designed to have minimum wage keep up with the cost of inflation.
Service employees who work under the "tip wage" will now receive a minimum $6.90 per hour.
Hannah Hartnett is a recent college graduate who works as a software product manager making well over minimum wage, but she fully supports the Maine law that raises minimum wage each year to the regional cost of living.
"Not everyone goes to college, and they should still have a livable wage,” Hartnett said.
She says she has no idea how anyone making minimum wage can pay their bills.
There are 20 states whose minimum wage is at or even below the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour. Both Georgia and Wyoming exempt certain occupations from being paid the federal minimum wage.
"My siblings both go to school in North Carolina, and they're working to pay. They have work-study jobs as part of their tuition. And they're making about half what they would make in Maine, which is just a stark difference just based on the state that you go to school in,” Hartnett said.
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