New Tucson $13 Per Hour Minimum Wage Takes Effect April 1

TUCSON, AZ — Tucson's minimum wage, as of April 1, is $13 per hour, thanks to the Tucson Minimum Wage Act, approved by voters in November. Arizona's minimum wage is $12.80 per hour.

This increase is the first step in several incremental increases that will bring the minimum wage in Tucson to $15 per hour as of Jan. 1, 2025.

The increase in pay for someone making $12.80 per hour would mean $416 more per year, before taxes. However the next increase put in place by the law is in less than a year, on Jan. 1, 2023 when the minimum wage will increase to $13.50 per hour. It will increase again on Jan. 1, 2024 to $14.25 per hour, before reaching the $15 mark in 2025.

After After 2025, the minimum wage will increase each year based on the federal Consumer Price Index. The new minimum wage for each upcoming year will be announced every November.

The new minimum wage law applies to all employees working for hire within the city. That includes employees who work within the Tucson city limits for 5 hours or more per week, even if the business that employs them is outside of the city limits, according to the Tucson Chamber of Commerce.

The new law will also require large employers to pay a minimum of three hours worth of wages when an employee's shift is cut short or canceled with fewer than 24 hours notice to the employee. Businesses with an average of 26 employees at the final quarter of the previous year are considered large employers. That number includes part-time employees, temporary workers and those employed outside the city.

Employers of workers who receive regular tips can use those tips to offset the minimum wage requirement by no more than $3 per hour.

The new law also calls for the creation of a City Department of Labor Standards to investigate businesses accused of violating the minimum wage law. However, so far the city has not created such a department, according to a report from the Arizona Daily Star. Instead of creating a new department, City Manager David Ortega told the city council that he wanted to use existing infrastructure within the city's Business Services Department to enforce the law, by creating a Labor Standards Unit within that department.

Some advocates of the law expressed concerns that the unit would not have the capacity to fulfill all the requirements of the new law, and also said that creating a unit instead of a department did not fulfill the city's requirements for enforcing the law, as it was written and approved by the voters.

The unit will be required to investigate complaints that a business isn't following the law within 60 days. The unit will also have the authority to inspect payroll and time records and to revoke, suspect or decline business licenses, according to the chamber.

Businesses could be fined up to $100 per day for each employee paid below the minimum wage for each day a violation occurred.

If a business is found in violation of the law, it could be ordered to provide backpay to employees who weren't being paid minimum wage. Anyone can file a complaint against a Tucson business for failing to pay minimum wage.

The unit will be taking complaints as of April 1. You can mail paper complaints to City of Tucson Labor Standards Unit, Public Works, 201 N. Stone Ave. or submit complaints via email to minimumwage@tucsonaz.gov.