Oregon minimum wage set to increase to $9.10 January 1.
As Oregon prepares to see its minimum wage increase in the new year, the Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) issued the following five things to know about the state’s minimum wage:
1) Nearly 100,000 Oregon workers will see wage increases starting January 1.
Oregon’s minimum wage will increase from $8.95 to $9.10 for 98,000 minimum wage employees.
2) The 2014 increase for Oregon’s minimum wage will boost consumer purchasing power and is expected to generate more than $20 million in new economic activity for the state.
The minimum wage adjustment will mean that directly-affected employees working 30 hours a week will have $234 more to spend on goods in 2014.
3) Oregon’s minimum wage is tied to inflation to help employees keep pace with the rising cost of goods and services.
In 2002, Oregon voters passed an indexed minimum wage that increases based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), a figure published by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics to track prices for a fixed market basket of goods.
4) Most minimum wage workers are at least 20 years old.
According to the Economic Policy Institute, roughly 80 percent of all minimum wage workers living in states with an indexed minimum wage last year were at least 20 years old.
In addition, about two thirds of all workers across the country earning a minimum wage or less are women, according to the National Women’s Law Center.
5) Employers can download 2014 minimum wage posters for free.
Oregon employers can download free minimum wage posters from BOLI’s website at www.oregon.gov/boli/WHD/pages/minimum_wage_posters.aspx.
For more information about BOLI’s efforts to support Oregon’s workforce and provide assistance to Oregon employers, please visit www.oregon.gov/BOLI.
