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Illinois and New Jersey just passed a $15 minimum wage. That means 1.8 million workers get a raise.
Years of strikes and rallies to raise the minimum wage across the US are starting to pay off.
Earlier this month, New Jersey became the fourth state in the country to raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour. Illinois is poised to become the fifth one.
On Thursday, Illinois state lawmakers passed a law that will gradually raise the wage floor from $8.25 to $15 an hour by 2024 —the first state in the Midwest to do so. Illinois’s new governor, J.B. Pritzker, had campaigned on a $15 minimum wage and is expected to sign the bill in the coming days. Earlier this month, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed a similar bill.
In all, nearly 2 million low-wage workers in both states will get a raise in 2019, according to an analysis by the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
The news signals growing momentum for the years-long effort to raise the minimum pay to $15 an hour for workers all across the country. California was the first state to hike hourly wages to $15 in 2016, followed by Massachusetts, New York, and Washington, DC. And Democrats in Congress are now considering a bill for the first time that would establish a $15 federal minimum wage.
Earlier this month, New Jersey became the fourth state in the country to raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour. Illinois is poised to become the fifth one.
On Thursday, Illinois state lawmakers passed a law that will gradually raise the wage floor from $8.25 to $15 an hour by 2024 —the first state in the Midwest to do so. Illinois’s new governor, J.B. Pritzker, had campaigned on a $15 minimum wage and is expected to sign the bill in the coming days. Earlier this month, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed a similar bill.
In all, nearly 2 million low-wage workers in both states will get a raise in 2019, according to an analysis by the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
The news signals growing momentum for the years-long effort to raise the minimum pay to $15 an hour for workers all across the country. California was the first state to hike hourly wages to $15 in 2016, followed by Massachusetts, New York, and Washington, DC. And Democrats in Congress are now considering a bill for the first time that would establish a $15 federal minimum wage.
[link:https://www.vox.com/2019/2/15/18226222/illinois-new-jersey-15-minimum-wage|
One should be able to expect a living wage without having to hold down 3 jobs..
6 replies
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gets expunged. What's coming next is legalization of recreational marijuana in the state of IL. Dems control the entire state government legislators and governor. Gov Prtizker is pushing for it.
It will not help too much with our state deficit. But, it will help with arrests.
Personally, I need every brain cell I got. I wish I had more . So no pot for me. 
when the Trump Slump really kicks in, Repubs will falsely blame it on shit like this. 
It is long overdue, nationwide though, so congrats to IL and NJ. 
