Florida Voters Approve $15 Minimum Wage

Minimum wage workers in Florida will see their income increased starting next year. In last week’s election, more than 60% of registered Florida voters supported an increase to the state’s minimum wage from US$8.56 to $15 an hour, according to the Associated Press. Florida became the eight and second-most populous state to approve the $15 minimum wage, Amendment 2 on the election ballot, which will impact 2.5 million workers, The Hill reports.

The passage of Amendment 2 was a win for labor advocates in Florida who have argued the current minimum wage is unlivable in the state, where the cost of living is higher than the national average. Florida for a Fair Wage, the advocacy group leading the amendment, states on their website, “Amendment 2 would lift pay for hundreds of thousands of Floridians and reverse decades of growing pay inequality. It allows individuals to take pride in their work rather than fight the endless cycle of poverty.”

The $15 minimum wage will gradually increase over the next six years—$10 in 2021 and then $1 each year until reaching $15 in September 2026, according to Fast Company.