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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: 202-219-8211
The federal minimum wage for hourly workers will increase
to $5.15 an hour on Monday, Sept. 1, 1997, completing the two-step minimum wage
increase signed into law by President Clinton on Aug. 20, 1996.
"Thomas Jefferson once said, In matters of principle, stand
like a rock,'" said President Clinton. "This increase in the minimum wage
affirms our commitment to stand like a rock' for our working families and their
right to jobs that provide fair compensation."
Full-time minimum wage earners will now make $10,300 a
year, up $1,800 from the full-time annual earnings under the minimum wage of
$4.25 an hour that was in effect from April, 1991 until Oct. 1, 1996, when it
was raised to $4.75 an hour.
"America's robust economy has created more than 2 million
jobs since October, 1996. Corporate profits and earnings for the average worker
are rising. This minimum wage increase will help ensure that the lowest-paid
Americans also share in this prosperity," said Secretary of Labor Alexis M.
Herman.
In 1938, the newly-passed Fair Labor Standards Act
established our first federal minimum wage at 25 cents an hour. Since then,
minimum wage increases have been signed into law by Presidents Truman,
Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Bush and Clinton. The minimum wage
increased to $4.25 an hour by 1991, but remained at that level for more than
five years. By 1996, approximately ten million American workers were earning
between $4.25 and $5.14 per hour.
Attached is a Q & A sheet with more details about the
minimum wage increase.
Questions and Answers About the Minimum Wage
What is the new minimum wage?
The federal minimum wage increases to $5.15 an hour
effective September 1, 1997. The federal minimum wage provisions are contained
in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Why did the minimum wage need to be increased?
By 1996, the minimum wage adjusted for inflation was
approaching a 40-year low. Inflation had largely wiped out the last increase in
the minimum wage approved by Congress in 1989. That's why in August, 1996
Congress passed and President Clinton signed into law a two-step increase,
lifting the minimum wage from $4.25 to $5.15. The first part of that increase
went into effect Oct. 1, 1996; today we are implementing the second step to
bring the minimum wage to $5.15.
When was the federal minimum wage last increased? How
often does it increase?
In 1989 a law was passed raising the minimum wage, in two
steps, from $3.35 to $4.25. That increase was fully implemented on April 1,
1991. The minimum wage was still $4.25 when, last August, Congress and the
President authorized another two-step increase to $5.15.
The minimum wage does not increase automatically --
Congress must pass a bill which the President signs into law in order for the
minimum wage to go up.
Who makes sure workers are paid the minimum wage?
The Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor
is responsible for enforcing the minimum wage. Using both enforcement and
public education efforts, Wage and Hour strives to ensure that workers are paid
the minimum wage.
The Wage and Hour Division has offices throughout the
country. The phone numbers and addresses for these offices can be found in the
federal government "blue pages" section of the telephone book under "Labor
Department."
The Department of Labor's Internet web site also provides
information about the minimum wage. Check out the "Minimum Wage" hot button at
www.dol.gov.
Who will get a pay raise?
The minimum wage law (the FLSA) applies to employees of
enterprises that do at least $500,000 in business a year. It also applies to
employees of smaller firms if the employees are engaged in interstate commerce
or in the production of goods for commerce, such as employees who work in
transportation or communications or who regularly use the mails or telephones
for interstate communications. It also applies to employees of federal, state
or local government agencies, hospitals and schools, and it generally applies
to domestic workers.
The FLSA contains a number of exemptions from the minimum
wage that may apply to some workers. The law establishes a youth sub-minimum
wage of $4.25 that employers can pay employees under 20 years of age during
their first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment with an employer. The
youth sub-minimum wage is not affected by the September 1, 1997 increase.
The Wage and Hour Division has a Handy Reference Guide to
the Fair Labor Standards Act that explains how the law applies. Write to the
nearest office of the Wage and Hour Division for a copy of the guide, or access
it from the Department of Labor's Internet web site.
What happens if state law requires a different minimum
wage that federal law?
Where state law requires a higher minimum wage, that
higher standard applies.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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