Proposed Bill Could Raise PA Minimum Wage To $20 Per Hour

HARRISBURG, PA — A bill moving through the Pennsylvania Senate could raise the Commonwealth's minimum wage to $20 per hour as early as next month if lawmakers approve the legislation.

Senate Bill 1186, introduced by Democratic Sen. Christine Tartaglione, seeks to raise Pennsylvania's minimum wage from $7.25 per hour, established in 2006 to comply with the federal minimum wage.

If passed, Pennsylvania would have the highest minimum wage in the nation, according to U.S. Department of Labor data.

"Tellingly, $7.24 per hour is the very definition of a poverty-level wage for a childless adult... and is even further below the threshold when factoring in children," Tartaglione said in a memo introducing the bill. "Keeping people in poverty is not how we move the Commonwealth forward — our current wage is immoral and unjustifiable."

The bill is one of several introduced in the state General Assembly that seeks to amend the Minimum Wage Act Of 1968. While other bills suggest raising the minimum wage to $15 or $18 per hour, Tartaglione said her proposal is tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers, which takes cost of living increases into consideration.

If passed, the bill would go into effect on July 1, 2024. Currently, the bill is awaiting consideration in the Senate Labor & Industry Committee.

"After almost two decades of inaction, even a wage of $15 per hour is no longer adequate," Tartaglione said. "If our legislature had passed a $15 per hour minimum wage 10 years ago and tied it to the CPI-U, it would be just short of $20 per hour today."

If passed, the bill would also set the tipped wage to 70 percent of the minimum wage and allow municipalities to set a local minimum wage greater than the state minimum wage.

Furthermore, the legislation would also:

• Guard against wage theft by ensuring the Department of Labor & Industry could recover wages and penalties for all violations of the act.
• Increasing monetary penalties for violations.
• Bring enforcement in line with the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act by allowing workers to receive damages in addition to unpaid wages.
• Enshrine in law that gratuities are the sole property of the employee.

According to Tartaglione, more than 1.5 million Pennsylvanians who make below the living wage would benefit from the proposal.

"Pennsylvanians need a dignified wage, not a wage synonymous with poverty," Tartaglione said.