Mission Accomplished: State's Minimum Wage Will Increase

North Carolina’s minimum wage will finally increase to $6.15 per hour on January 1, 2007. Governor Mike Easley signed HB 2174 into law on Thursday, which will increase the state’s minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.15. Hats off to Rep. Alma Adams (D-Guilford) for her hard work and tireless crusade on this issue. The bill also ties North Carolina’s minimum wage to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. If the federal minimum wage is raised, employees in North Carolina will receive whichever wage is higher. The federal minimum wage is currently $5.15 an hour and has not been raised in nine years, and as a result, many states have taken it upon themselves to raise state rates. The wage increase is expected to benefit 139,000 workers in North Carolina.