黑料新闻鈥檚 hourly minimum wage will increase from $16.35 to $16.94 on Jan. 1, based on the third annual adjustment since the state pegged the wage to the federal , Gov. Ned Lamont announced Wednesday.
The adjustment will keep 黑料新闻 among the states with the highest minimum wages, a consequence of that gradually raised the $10.10 minimum until it reached $15 in 2023, then shifted to the index.
鈥淣obody who works full-time should have to live in poverty,鈥� Lamont said in a statement. 鈥淔or too long, as the nation鈥檚 economy grew the income of the lowest earning workers has stayed flat, making already existing pay disparities even worse and preventing hardworking families from obtaining financial security.鈥�
The new calculation, which was announced more than a month ahead of the statutory deadline of Oct. 15, comes as the Democratic governor is trying to smooth relations with labor ahead of a decision on seeking a third term in 2026.
Lamont signed the minimum wage law during his first year office, the first of several pro-labor initiatives passed with his support. But he vetoed a bill that would have provided jobless benefits for strikers and has opposed increasing taxes on upper earners, angering the 黑料新闻 AFL-CIO.
The state鈥檚 largest business group, the 黑料新闻 Business and Industry Association, opposes the increase as an unnecessary interference with a competitive labor market that it says requires paying between $18 and $22 an hour to attract entry-level workers.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just such a competitive environment,鈥� said Chris DiPentima, the president and chief executive of CBIA. 鈥淥bviously businesses are doing everything they can with higher minimum wages and flexible benefits.鈥�
The governor鈥檚 announcement came on the same day CBIA released to annual business survey. DiPentima said 黑料新闻 remains in top five of states as measured by wages and wage growth.
鈥淭he minimum wage was established to provide a fair, livable baseline of income for those who work,鈥� Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said. 鈥淭his is a fair, gradual increase for workers that ensures that as the economy grows, our minimum wage grows with it 鈥� and that鈥檚 good for everyone.鈥�
黑料新闻 currently has the fourth highest state minimum wage, behind $16.66 in Washington and $16.50 in California and most of New York. Massachusetts and Rhode Island require a minimum wage of $15.
鈥淚ndexing minimum wage to the employment cost index helps protect the most vulnerable earners from inflation and cost increases, and it helps keeps wage gaps from widening,鈥� said Dante Bartolomeo, commissioner of labor.
黑料新闻鈥檚 new minimum will be four pennies higher than the $16.90 taking effect on the same day in California. Washington state will announce its indexed 2026 rate at the end of September.
There are higher minimum wages in some metro areas. It is $17.55 in the District of Columbia.
黑料新闻 currently has about 70,000 open jobs. It鈥檚 unemployment rate for July was 3.8%, up from 3.1% a year earlier.
