Newsbreak: 23 US States Raise Minimum Wage, But Most Still Fall Short of Living Wage

As of January 2023, 23 US states and Washington, D.C., have increased their minimum wage, with four more states to follow later this year. New wages range from $9.95 per hour in Montana to $16.10 per hour in D.C. While the federal minimum wage has remained at $7.25 per hour since 2009, states have increased their minimum wages in response. However, none of the state minimum wages align with the living wage for one adult with no dependents, according to MIT’s Living Wage Calculator.

Based on a report by CNBC Make It on February 16, 2023, it was found that 48% of non-family households in Kansas earning the minimum wage ($7.25) or less fall within the income bracket of the living wage ($15.69) for one adult with no dependents. These households account for approximately 17% of the state’s population. Other states have a similar problem where single people working full-time on the minimum wage are not earning enough to survive.

One reason wages have not kept up with the cost of living is because policymakers are likely using outdated figures to calculate the cost of living. Another reason is that some believe that low-wage workers need to be paid less so that they are forced to spend it, ensuring money is still being circulated in the economy. In some southern states, where the country’s history with slavery plays a role in current minimum wages, they don’t technically have a minimum wage or have extremely low sub-minimum wages.

Cities can also set their own minimum wages. However, the state living wages per the Living Wage Calculator are weighted averages and do not account for the variation of residents’ living expenses on the ground. “Low pay in this country is a very widespread problem,” says Ben Zipperer, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute.