New Jersey residents are
celebrating the New Year and the state's minimum wage officially being raised.
Today’s
increase continues the state’s path to a $15 minimum wage. Today’s jump goes
from $11 an hour to $12 an hour.
Every year
the minimum wage will increase by a dollar so 2022 will be $13 and so on until
2024 when it rises to $15 an hour.
With so
many people struggling to make ends meet and being laid off during the
pandemic, this increase will hopefully be a bit of help.
Because the
economy has taken a hit this year due of the pandemic, so there have been
concerns about continuing with the increases. However, Gov. Murphy has
responded to these concerns by saying the rise in wages is needed more than
ever. "And
some folks have said, 'hey, listen, given the circumstances that we're under,
should that be reconsidered?,' and the answer is, it can't be. We need
and/both. We need more federal help to help us, help our small businesses, and
we need to let the minimum wage continue to go on its march toward $15. We have
far too many people in our state living below the poverty line and so that's
another big step."
Mall businesses, businesses that hire seasonal
employees and farm workers will have a bit longer to reach that $15 an hour
mark.