According to Public Policy Polling, by margins of 14 to 28 points, a majority of voters in every state supports raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. On average more than 80% of Democrats support the hike as do at least a plurality of independents and an average of about 30% of Republicans in each state.
The proposed increases range from an immediate hike to $8.50 an hour in Arkansas and South Dakota to a nation-wide high of $15 an hour in San Francisco. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. As of August 1st, 23 states and the District of Columbia had minimum wages set above the federal minimum.
Minimum wage increases are indexed for the future in all the votes scheduled today except for Arkansas and Nebraska. Workers who earn tips are treated differently in every state: in Alaska, a tipped worker gets 100% of the full minimum wage rate which would rise to $9.75 by 2016 if voters approve the initiative; in Arkansas, tipped workers would receive $2.63 an hour base pay and the minimum wage would rise to $8.50 by 2017 if the initiative is passed; in Nebraska tipped workers would receive $2.13 (the current minimum for tipped workers) and the minimum would rise to $9.00 an hour by 2016; and in South Dakota, tipped workers would get 40% of the full-time minimum and the hike would raise that to $8.50 by 2015.
In the three California cities, tipped workers would receive 100% of the minimum wage. Eureka is voting on a rise to $12.00 an hour by 2015, Oakland voters are deciding on a rise to $12.25 by 2015, and in San Francisco the minimum would rise to $15.00 by 2018.
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