By Kevin Hardy
Stateline, January 10, 2025. Also Yahoo News, Missouri Independent, St. Joseph News Press (MO), South Dakota Searchlight, Maryville Forum (MO), more
The minimum wage will increase in nearly half the states this year even as the federal wage floor remains stuck at $7.25 per hour. In many states, the minimum wage is automatically adjusted upward as inflation rises. But voters in several states, including deeply red ones such as Alaska and Missouri, chose in November to significantly increase their minimum wages this year. ...
But Mark Robokoff, who owns the pet supply store AK Bark in Anchorage, sees a higher wage floor as good for business. He said the minimum wage increase will put more money into the pockets of his customers.
“It’s not like there’s no benefit to this cost,” Robokoff said.
To attract the best staff, he said, employee wages start at $17 per hour. But he expects to ratchet that figure up as the state’s minimum wage increases.
“That’s why it needed to be a law,” he said. “It only works if we all do it. Then we all get more revenue and pay our employees a little bit more.”