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one fair wage
'A National Disgrace': 19 States to Raise Minimum Wage But Federal Rate Stuck at $7.25
One Fair Wage noted that "tipped workers can still legally be paid as little as $2.13 an hour, a system advocates describe as a direct legacy of slavery."
Dec 31, 2025
Over a third of US states are set to raise their minimum hourly wage in 2026, but worker advocates including Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday decried a federal minimum wage that's remained at $7.25 since 2009—and just $2.13 an hour for tipped workers for over three decades.
Minimum wage hikes are set to go into effect in 19 states on Thursday: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.
Increases range from 28 cents in Minnesota to $2 in Hawaii, with an average hike of 67 cents across all 19 states. More than 8.3 million workers will benefit from the increases, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). The mean minimum wage in those 19 states will rise to $14.57 in 2026, up from $13.90 this year.
Three more states—Alaska, Florida, and Oregon—plus Washington, DC are scheduled to raise their minimum wages later in 2026.
In addition to the state hikes, nearly 50 counties and municipalities plan to raise their minimum wages in the coming year, according to the National Employment Law Project (NELP). These include San Diego, California—where the minimum wage for hospitality workers is set to rise to $25 an hour by 2030—and Portland, Maine, where all workers will earn at least $19 by 2028.
However, the federal minimum wage remains at $7.25, and the subminimum rate for tipped workers is $2.13, where it's been since 1991—and has lost more than half its purchasing power since then.
The federal minimum wage has stayed at $7.25 since 2009. In 2026, workers in 19 states and 49 cities and counties an increase. Alabama’s rate will stay at $7.25. 🔗 https://t.co/mrGfPAKba3 pic.twitter.com/EsokVIc6KP
— AL.com (@aldotcom) December 31, 2025
"Tipped workers can still legally be paid as little as $2.13 an hour, a system advocates describe as a direct legacy of slavery," the advocacy group One Fair Wage (OFW) said in a statement Tuesday.
Sanders (I-Vt.) said on social media on the eve of the hikes: "Congratulations to the 19 states raising the minimum wage in 2026. But let’s be clear: A $7.25 federal minimum wage is a national disgrace. No one who works full time should live in poverty. We must keep fighting to guarantee all workers a living wage—not starvation wages."
Yannet Lathrop, NELP's senior researcher and policy analyst, said earlier this month that "the upcoming minimum wage increases are incremental and won’t magically turn severely underpaid jobs into living-wage jobs, but they do offer a bit of relief at a time when every dollar matters for people."
“The bigger picture is that raising the minimum wage is just one piece of a much larger fight for a good jobs economy rooted in living wages and good benefits for every working person," Lathrop added. "That’s where we need to get to."
Numerous experts note that neither $7.25, nor even $15 an hour, is a livable wage anywhere in the United States.
"The gap between wages and real living costs is stark," OFW said. "According to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, there is no county in the United States where a worker can afford to meet basic needs on less than $25 an hour. Even in the nation’s least expensive counties, a worker with one child would need at least $33 an hour to cover essentials like rent, food, childcare, and transportation."
"Advocates argue that policies like President [Donald] Trump’s 'no tax on tips' proposal fail to address the underlying problem of poverty wages," OFW continued. "While the policy has drawn attention, they say it is a headline rather than a solution, particularly since nearly two-thirds of tipped workers do not earn enough to owe federal income taxes."
Frustrated by the long-unchanged $7.25 federal minimum wage, numerous states in recent years have let voters give themselves raises via ballot initiatives. Such measures have been successful even in some red states, including Missouri and Nebraska.
Rising minimum wages are a legacy of the union-backed #FightFor15 movement that began among striking fast-food workers in 2012. At least 20 states now have minimum wages of $15 or higher.
However, back then, "the buying power of a $15 minimum wage was substantially higher than it is today," EPI noted. "In 2025, a $15 minimum wage does not achieve economic security for working people in most of the country. This is particularly true in the highest cost-of-living cities."
In April, US senators voted down an amendment that would have raised the federal minimum wage to $17 an hour. Every Democratic and Independent upper chamber lawmaker voted in favor of the measure, while all Republicans except Sen. Josh Hawley (Mo.) rejected it.
As Trump administration and Republican policies and practices—such as passing healthcare legislation that does not include an extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, which are set to expire on Wednesday and send premiums soaring—coupled with persistently high living costs squeeze workers, advocates say a living wage is more important than ever.
The issue is underscored by glaring income and wealth inequality in the US, as well as a roughly 285:1 CEO to worker pay gap among S&P 500 companies last year.
"Minimum wage doesn't cover the cost of living," Janae van De Kerk, an organizer with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Airport Workers union and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport employee, said in a video posted Tuesday on social media.
"Minimum wage doesn't cover the cost of living. Many of my co-workers have to choose between food on the table or health insurance" Janae, Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport service worker No one should have to make that choice.
[image or embed]
— Airport Workers United (@goodairports.bsky.social) December 30, 2025 at 10:34 AM
"Many of my co-workers have to choose between food on the table or health insurance, or the choice between having food and paying the electric bill," van De Kerk—who advocates a $25 hourly minimum wage—continued.
"We shouldn't have to worry about those things," she added. "We shouldn't have to stress about those things. We're willing to work and we wanna work, and we should be paid for our work."
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Living Wage, Affordability Platforms Like Mamdani and Platner’s Have 'Major Electoral Advantage': Polls
Democratic leaders in recent months have refused to throw their support behind candidates who are centering affordability in their campaigns.
Oct 09, 2025
As One Fair Wage launched a new political action committee focused on electing candidates who will push for a true living wage that makes it possible for working people across the US to thrive, the coalition said two new surveys provide a "roadmap for 2026" for candidates and Democratic leaders who are willing to follow it.
The polls were conducted by Democratic polling firm Lake Research Partners on behalf of One Fair Wage (OFW) and the Living Wage for All Coalition, and found "overwhelming support for living wage policies in competitive swing districts and in major cities."
In 18 competitive congressional districts across the country, the first survey found that 55% of respondents supported raising the minimum wage for all workers to $25 per hour, even after being exposed to opposition messaging.
Latino voters showed the strongest support at 72%, along with people of color overall at 64%, women at 60%, and people under age 40 at 59%.
With grocery prices harder to afford than they were one year ago in many swing districts, as another poll showed last week, 56% of people said raising the minimum wage is a high or medium priority for them, including 71% of Democratic voters.
The firm also asked voters in major cities with high costs of living, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco, whether they supported raising the minimum wage to $30 in those areas, and found similar results.
Two-thirds said they backed gradually raising the minimum wage for all workers to $30 per hour.
"Support is strongest among the very voters Democrats must mobilize to win in 2026 and 2028: Black voters (80%), Latino voters (73%), young voters under 40 (72%), and women (72%) all back the proposal," Lake Research Partners said.
"If Democrats don’t deliver, the right will continue to exploit the affordability crisis to divide working people. Delivering real affordability is how we restore trust—and how we save democracy.”
Support for the proposal was highest in New York City, where Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani (D-36) has included a $30 minimum wage proposal as part of his mayoral campaign platform—one that's heavily focused on making the city more affordable for all New Yorkers.
Seventy-two percent of New Yorkers said they supported the proposal.
The polling comes as endorsements from lawmakers and advocacy groups that have long been aligned with the Democratic Party have piled up for Mamdani—and as powerful party leaders in New York including US House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand have continued to refuse to publicly support the democratic socialist.
Saru Jayaraman, president of OFW, warned that a failure to deliver on affordability and living wages before the midterm elections next year will make "saving democracy" from President Donald Trump and the Republican Party impossible.
"We represent 13.6 million restaurant workers in America," Jayaraman told Common Dreams. "And over the last nine months, they've repeatedly asked us: 'You want us to come to a rally on a Saturday to save democracy? I work three jobs and I earn $3 [an hour]. What has democracy done for me lately? Nothing.'"
Along with electing candidates who center living wages and affordability, Jayaraman said in a statement that delivering on the issue "means passing Living Wage for All legislation in every blue state next spring and ensuring no one is left behind."
"If Democrats don’t deliver, the right will continue to exploit the affordability crisis to divide working people," she said. "Delivering real affordability is how we restore trust—and how we save democracy.”
Joining OFW in launching the Make America Affordable Now PAC on Thursday are Democratic candidates who are centering affordability and living wages in their campaigns, including Minnesota state Sen. Omar Fateh (D-62), who is running for mayor of Minneapolis; Seattle mayoral candidate Katie Wilson; and US Senate candidate Graham Platner of Maine.
Like Mamdani, Platner's candidacy has elicited excitement from progressives as he's spoken out against US support for Israel's assault on Gaza and the oligarchy that has seen billionaires like Trump megadonor Elon Musk amass more political power as working people struggle to afford healthcare, groceries, and other essentials. He has put forward a platform that calls to raise the federal minimum wage and index it to inflation.
But Democratic leaders have shown little enthusiasm for Platner's embrace of policies that would make life more affordable for Mainers—despite polls showing that such proposals could help him win a seat that's been held by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) since 1997.
Schumer has led a push for Democratic Gov. Janet Mills to enter the race instead of backing Platner, who in addition to backing broadly popular policies, has shown to be a formidable fundraiser—bringing in more than $4 million since announcing his candidacy in August.
On Thursday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)—who has endorsed Platner—denounced Democratic leaders for meddling in the race.
"It’s disappointing that some Democratic leaders are urging Gov. Mills to run," said Sanders. "We need to focus on winning that seat and not waste millions on an unnecessary and divisive primary."
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Nearly Half of US Workers Earn Below a Living Wage: Report
"The shocking truth is that half of America cannot afford to live in America," said one leading campaigner for better wages.
Aug 29, 2025
Pro-worker advocacy organization One Fair Wage on Friday released a report that detailed the precarious financial situation facing American workers.
In all, the report found that 67 US million workers, or nearly half the entire American workforce, earn less than $25 per hour, which is what One Fair Wage has calculated constitutes a living wage in 2025.
To put this into perspective, the report notes that the Fight for $15 campaign that started in 2012 to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour would be way out of date today, as such a wage would only be worth $21 per hour today, which would still be below a living wage.
As if this weren't bad enough, the report outlines three crucial factors that could put further pressure on American workers: US President Donald Trump's tariffs on imported goods, the cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program contained in the Republican budget law, and the fact that tipped workers are in many cases are paid subminimum wages.
Trump's much-hyped "no tax on tips" initiative is a flop in this regard, the report states, because "two-thirds of tipped workers do not earn enough to file income taxes, meaning the vast majority would see no benefit from this measure."
"The shocking truth is that half of America cannot afford to live in America," said Saru Jayaraman, president of One Fair Wage. "The Fight for $15 changed history by lifting up the public imagination and proving that bold demands can become reality. Now workers are calling for something more fundamental, a living wage that actually meets the cost of survival. This Labor Day, thousands of workers are rising up in New York, Chicago, and across the country to demand real solutions and to launch the Living Wage for All campaign to make America affordable now."
In total, the report estimates that a true living wage today would need to be between $25 and $30 per hour.
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