The state's Department of Labor and Industries has announced a minimum wage increase to $16.28 per hour, representing a 3.4% increase.
This adjustment is made in accordance with the authority granted to the department by Washington state voters in 1998 to modify the minimum wage based on inflation.
The calculation for the raise is determined by using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers.
Certain cities in Washington, like Seattle and SeaTac, have the authority to establish higher minimum wage rates than the state's mandated minimum.
In addition to the minimum wage increase, the department has also raised the minimum compensation for ride-sharing service drivers.
In Seattle, drivers will now earn a minimum of "66 cents per passenger platform minute and $1.55 per passenger platform mile, or $5.81, whichever is greater."
In SeaTac, the minimum compensation for drivers is "38 cents per passenger platform minute and $1.31 per passenger platform mile, or $3.37, whichever is greater."
1. This wage increase follows recent legislative action in California, where a bill was passed to raise the minimum wage for fast food workers.2.
Under the new California law, fast food workers are entitled to a minimum wage of at least $20 per hour.
For information about the minimum wage in your specific state, you can refer to the Department of Labor's data, which provides minimum wage rates per hour for each state.