LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Hundreds of thousands of Nevada workers are getting a raise. Governor Steve Sisolak signed an increase in the state’s minimum wage into law on Wednesday.
The bill the governor signed passed during the legislative session. It will give many workers a nearly- 50-percent raise over a period of several years.
Currently, the minimum wage is $7.25 an hour for workers that receive benefits and $8.25 for those who do not. Under this new law, the minimum wage will increase 75-cents every year. That means by 2024, workers with benefits will make $11 an hour or $12 an hour for those without benefits.
The first increase doesn’t happen until Jan. 1, 2020. Supporters of the minimum wage say Nevada workers deserve a raise. They point to the rising cost of housing and the fact that Nevada’s minimum wage is lower than other states including California, Utah and Oregon.
Critics of the law say it will actually hurt low-skilled and low-income workers. They point to studies out of Seattle and New York where the minimum wage is $15 and where minimum wage workers have seen hours cut and overall earnings decrease.
Assembly Speaker Jason Frierson, who pushed the minimum wage hike,