Report: 250,000 Minnesota hourly workers make minimum wage or less
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ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) - Nearly 250,000 hourly workers in Minnesota earn $9.50 an hour or less, according to a new report from the state Department of Labor and Industry.
The 2016 Minnesota Minimum wage report presents trends about the Minnesota's minimum wage workers examines the state of the workers in over the year.
This year's trend found of the 1.61 million wage earners in Minnesota, about 15 percent, or 248,000 people, make the state minimum wage ($9.50) or less. The report does clarify that of those workers, 38 percent work in a place that pays them overtime, tips or commission that would not be reflected in their hourly wage.
Among other trends found in the 44-page report; women are more likely than men to be paid minimum wage, 18 percent of minimum wage households are at or below the poverty line and 46 percent of the minimum wage earners are older than 24 years old.
Minnesota raised its minimum wage in August 2016 to $9.50 an hour for companies with revenues about $500,000 and $7.75 for companies with revenues less than $500,000.