Virginia's minimum wage will rise on Jan. 1 from $12.41 an hour to $12.77 an hour. Here are five things to know about the change.
Who's covered?Â
All full-time, part-time and temporary workers are covered, except for a few as listed in the Code of Virginia, including farm workers, golf course caddies and camp counselors. Workers who get tips must get at least the state minimum through a combination of a lower hourly wage and tip income.
Why did it rise?
Under a 2020 law, the Virginia Minimum Wage Act, the Commissioner of Labor and Industry must establish the adjusted state hourly minimum wage by Oct. 1 each year for the 12 months to begin Jan. 1. Virginia law says the state minimum wage should increase every year in line with the national inflation rate. On Jan. 1, 2025, Virginia's minimum wage had increased from $12 per hour to $12.41 per hour.
The General Assembly voted in 2020 to increase the minimum wage in steps with the inflation rate because the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour had not changed since 2009.
Earle-Sears; Spanberger
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR’S OFFICE AND THEN-REP. SPANBERGER’S CONGRESSIONAL OFFICE
What do Virginia's leaders say?
Gov. Glenn Youngkin has vetoed bills two years in a row that would raise Virginia's minimum wage over time to $15 per hour. Youngkin said in his veto message: "The free market for salaries and wages works," and responds to the nuances of economic conditions and regional differences.
Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic nominee for governor, said in April that if she is elected she would sign legislation raising Virginia's minimum wage to $15 per hour. A spokeswoman for Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the Republican nominee for governor, said at the time: "Winsome trusts working families and small business owners to drive Virginia forward — not Washington politicians with a failed agenda."
How does Virginia's rate compare?
Virginia’s minimum wage is lower than Washington D.C.’s $17.17 an hour and Maryland’s $15 an hour, but higher than West Virginia’s $8.25 an hour and rates in Kentucky, North Carolina and Tennessee, where the federal rate of $7.25 applies.
