Advocates for a living wage will be asking our elected officials to deliver on their promises and pass a living wage bill in the 2021 legislative session. But we can’t do it without support from you.
It’s time to Raise Up Hawaiʻi
Every worker deserves a Living Wage.
All tagged Community Health
The wage will increase to $18 by 2028, while many Hawaii taxpayers will get one-time checks for $300.
With his signature, House Bill 2510 would increase minimum wage, improve major tax credit.
At a Labor for Living Wages rally at the Hawai’i State Capitol on Wednesday, Kona Rep. Jeanne Kapela said current wages cannot begin to satisfy the state’s highest cost-of-living standards in the nation.
The vast majority of those who testified at Monday’s LCA meeting favored the 2026 date for the increase, with 113 testifying in support of the 2026 date and 11 individuals testifying in support of the 2028 date. Five favored a Hawai‘i Chamber of Commerce proposal for $15 an hour by 2027, and 11 favored no increase at all.
This demonstration comes after the state House pivoted away from the original minimum-wage proposal, Senate Bill 2018, that would have incrementally increased the minimum wage to $18 an hour by 2026.
Clearly, the state can improve economic conditions for residents by creating truly affordable housing and raising the minimum wage.
What can you buy for $10? Two gallons of unleaded gas... a gallon of milk? It's not enough for a plate lunch anymore… maybe a mini if you're lucky. You may have to settle for a few musubi. That’s how far $10 goes these days. Not far at all.
Now more than ever, we see that wage levels in Hawaiʻi need to be raised substantially to improve workers’ living standards and safeguard the public’s health.
