Regional News

Minimum wage will increase to $9.47 in 2015

Sep 30, 2014

Washington's minimum wage will increase 15 cents to $9.47 an hour beginning Jan. 1, 2015.

The Department of Labor &Industries calculates the state’s minimum wage each year as a required by Initiative 688, which voters approved in 1998. The change reflects a 1.59 percent increase in the federal Consumer Price Index.

The change will affect more than 67,000 workers, based on full-time equivalent positions according to the Washington State Employment Security Department. The increase will total $312 per year.

The minimum wage applies to workers in all industries, including agriculture, although 14- and 15-year-olds can be paid 85 percent of the adult minimum wage, or $8.05 an hour.

Washington has the highest state minimum wage in the nation, followed by Oregon, where the minimum wage will increase to $9.25 in 2015.