Labor Law Updates

When discussing employee pay, the terms minimum wage, prevailing wage and living wage are often used interchangeably — but they mean very different things. Understanding the distinction is essential, especially if you're an employer navigating complex wage requirements across states, cities or industries.

The legal environment for employers is always changing, particularly with state, county and city labor law requirements. For example, in the absence of any movement at the federal level since 2009, state legislatures continue to enact minimum wage increases.

If you operate across many jurisdictions, this flurry of separate minimum wage laws creates a unique compliance challenge. Yet it’s essential to keep up with them because when federal, state and local minimum wage laws differ, you’re legally required to pay the most generous rate to your hourly, nonexempt workers.

The federal minimum wage has stayed at $7.25/hour since 2009 – the longest period in history without an increase. Will this change in the coming year? Perhaps … but only if Congress acts on legislative initiatives targeting this “stagnant” rate.

The federal-level minimum wage hasn’t budged since 2009, remaining at $7.25/hr. a full decade later. On the state level, however, it’s quite a different story. During this time, numerous states and cities have stepped in and passed their own, higher minimum wages. In the past year alone, minimum wage increases took effect in approximately 75 states, cities and counties across the nation. These increases make up the biggest portion of mandatory postings employers must monitor and manage.