OLYMPIA, WA — Workers making minimum wage will see a slight increase to their paychecks starting this weekend.
As of Jan. 1, 2022, Washington's minimum wage will rise to $14.49 per hour, up from $13.69 in 2021. That's a healthier increase than the year before — wages rose just 19 cents between 2020 and 2021 — but it's driven by a 5.83 percent increase in the Consumer Price Index. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries says the extra increase should help offset the rising costs of gas, housing, and food.
Some local jurisdictions will see their wages rise even higher: in Seattle the minimum wage will be boosted from $17.27 per hour. Some employees at small businesses with 500 or fewer employees, who earn at least $1.52/hour in tips and whose employers pay at least $1.52/hour in medical benefits, have a lower minimum wage of $15.75 per hour.
The City of Seatac also has a higher minimum wage, which will rise to $17.54 in the new year.
Back in 2016, the minimum wage was just $9.47 per hour, but it has risen dramatically in the years since, thanks to voters who passed Initiative 1433, which mandated the state increase the minimum wage every year until it reached $13.50 by 2020. For every year after 2020, L&I is required to adjust the minimum wage to match the increased cost of living as calculated by the Consumer Price Index — hence the 80 cent increase for 2022.
The state's minimum wage also only applies to workers 16 and older. Under Washington state...
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