Florida minimum wage raised to $12 an hour as part of 2020 constitutional amendment

By Maxime Tamsett, CNN

(CNN) — Florida’s minimum wage rose by one dollar Saturday to $12/hour. The increase is the result of a constitutional amendment approved by voters in 2020 to gradually raise the Sunshine state’s minimum wage to $15/hour by September 30, 2026.

Florida’s minimum wage stood at $8.56/hour when voters approved the 2020 ballot measure to incrementally increase base pay, according to FloridaCommerce. As part of the approved amendment, the state’s minimum wage initially rose by $0.09 to $8.65 on January 1, 2021, and later to $10 on September 30 that same year.

Every Sept. 30 since, the minimum wage has increased by $1 until it will reach $15/hour by Sept. 30, 2026.

Meanwhile, the federal minimum wage has sat at $7.25/hour since 2009.

Florida’s northern neighbor Georgia ties with Wyoming for the lowest state minimum wage at $5.15/hour, according to the US Department of Labor.

By contrast, Washington has the highest minimum wage of any state at $15.54/hour, while Washington D.C.’s minimum wage was raised to $17/hour on July 1.

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