Economic Policy Institute states Ohio’s minimum wage is still too low to ‘maintain a modest, but adequate, standard of living.’
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Frank W. Lewis | Signal Statehouse
Ohio is one of 21 states that raised its minimum wage on New Year’s Day. The minimum wage in Ohio rose to $10.70 per hour for non-tipped employees, an increase of 25 cents. For workers who receive tips, the minimum wage went up 10 cents to $5.35 per hour.
The raise in Ohio will affect more than 300,000 people, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a nonpartisan organization that advocates for workers. The institute’s research shows that almost 90 percent of people benefitting from all state increases this year are adults, 58 percent are women and 20 percent are in families living below the federal poverty line.
In Ohio, the increase is required by a constitutional amendment, passed by voters in 2006, that ties the minimum wage to the rate of inflation.
Not all Ohio companies have to raise the minimum wage they pay. The increase only applies to companies with more than $394,000 in gross revenue per year. Those earning less must pay at least the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour.
How does Ohio’s minimum wage compare?
Nationally, Ohio’s non-tipped wage is now in the middle of the pack — lower than the rate in 25 states and higher than in 24, according to data gathered by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Still, “There is no county where an Ohio worker can earn less than $17.73 an hour and maintain a modest, but adequate, standard of living,” EPI reported.
Michigan’s rate is lower right now, $10.56, but will rise to $12.48 in February. Three more planned annual increases will bring it to almost $15 in 2028.
Three states — Illinois, Delaware and Rhode Island — raised their minimums to $15 this year, bringing the total number of states paying that much or more to 10.
In 2024, the Raise The Wage Ohio campaign proposed a new constitutional amendment that would have boosted the minimum to $12.75 this year and to $15 on Jan. 1, 2026, for non-tipped and tipped workers. The campaign fell short of the required number of petition signatures to get the amendment on the ballot in November but vowed to keep working and try again in 2025.
“A $15 minimum wage by 2026 would benefit nearly 1 million workers,” according to Policy Matters Ohio, “giving them on average an additional $2,128 in their pockets each year for full-time work, and bringing over $2 billion in additional wages to low-paid workers in Ohio.”
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