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 Hawaii Economy
Hawaii passed a groundbreaking minimum wage increase last year, but the work to build a society in which working families can thrive is far from over. Here are our priorities for 2023.
On Wednesday, Gov. David Ige signed House Bill 2510 into law, putting Hawaiʻi on a path toward the highest minimum wage in the country. As a small business owner, I say: It’s about time. No one can survive on $10.10 an hour—or just $21,000 a year—in Hawaiʻi.
Although, given HB 2510’s nearly six-year phase-in period, other states may reach that mark first, Hawaiʻi nevertheless becomes the first state to officially enact an $18 minimum wage.
Hawai‘i’s minimum wage is currently $10.10 an hour. The new law raises the rate in increments over the next several years, starting with $12 on Oct. 1.
The wage will increase to $18 by 2028, while many Hawaii taxpayers will get one-time checks for $300.
HB2510 will boost annual incomes for low-wage workers by thousands of dollars over the next 6 years, strengthening the economy while alleviating poverty.
Ige said that this “balanced approach” will begin in increments, starting by raising the minimum wage from $10.10 an hour to $12 in October.
Hawaiʻi enacted the nation’s first statewide $18 minimum wage law, with Gov. David Ige’s signature of a bill aimed at fighting poverty among the islands’ workers.
“People should be able to afford their basic needs on 40 hours a week,” said Nate Hix, the director of Living Wage Hawaii, an advocacy group that has been pushing for a higher minimum wage.
