Minimum Wage Increases New York City, New York State, and California

The new $15.00 minimum wage chart in New York State, with New York City first.

New York State Minimum Wage Increase

New York City	10 or fewer employees	11 or more employees
December 31, 2016	$10.50	$11.00
December 31, 2017	$12.00	$13.00
December 31, 2018	$13.50	$15.00
December 31, 2019	$15.00

The current minimum wage rate in New York is $10.40 per hour. This listed rate is for most employers in New York State. The minimum wage in New York City is $13.00 per hour for large employers and $12.00 per hour for small employers. The minimum wage for Long Island and Westchester Counties is $11.00. Tipped wages in New York may vary, by firm size, industry and amount of earned tips. The tipped wage ranges from $7.50 to $11.05 per hour. Current minimum wage rates for Fast Food Workers in New York State is $11.75 per hour and in New York City is $13.50 per hour. There are regular increases in the state through 2021 and in New York City through 2018.The scheduled increases for Fast Food Workers will continue as follows:

• New York State: $ $12.75 (12-31-18), $13.75 (12-31-19), $14.50 (12-31-20), $15.00 (12-31-21)
• New York City: $15.00 (12-31-18)

The minimum wage will rise to $10 an hour in Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester counties. Outside the metropolitan area, the wage will be raised to $9.70 an hour.

On Long Island and Westchester, the wage will hit $15 by the end of 2021.

For the rest of the state, the wage will grow to $12.50 at the end of 2020 and go on a schedule toward $15 set by the state Budget Division and Department of Labor

Editor's Note:

That means that the $15.00 minimum wage may not really be a $15.00 minimum wage if you read the fine print. Since the cost of living is higher in New York City the $15.00 minimum wage will go into effect quicker than the rest of New York State.

If you live outside of New York City you will be paid more if you work in New York City. It also means that if you live in New York City, but work elsewhere in New York State you will be paid less than if you worked in New York City at the minimum wage.

Here is how California is raising the minimum wage to $15.00 

 The California minimum wage will increase to $10.50 per hour on January 1, 2017 for businesses with 26 or more employees, and then increase each year until reaching $15 per hour in 2022.

Once the minimum wage reaches $15 per hour for all businesses, wages could then be increased each year up to 3.5 percent (rounded to the nearest 10 cents) for inflation as measured by the national Consumer Price Index.

Rate (Jan. 1)	26 Employees or More	25 Employees or Less
2017	$10.50	$10.00
2018	$11.00	$10.50
2019	$12.00	$11.00
2020	$13.00	$12.00
2021	$14.00	$13.00
2022	$15.00	$14.00
2023	$15.00	$15.00
2024	Indexed*	Indexed*