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4,700 Louisiana State Workers Would Benefit From Minimum Wage Increase
It would occur after years of Governor Edwards failing to convince lawmakers to raise the minimum wage for all Louisiana workers.
February 25, 2023
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Find out what's happening in Across Louisianafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
4,700 Louisiana state workers would benefit from minimum wage increase
Edwards limits scope of raise after GOP lawmakers reject across-the-board hike 7 times
By: Julie O'Donoghue - February 25, 2023 2:00 pm
Find out what's happening in Across Louisianafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
After failing to get state lawmakers to increase the minimum wage for all Louisiana workers, Gov. John Bel Edwards has proposed an increase to $10 per hour for some 4,700 state employees who are currently paid less than rate. (Photo by Greg LaRose/Louisiana Illuminator)
After years of failing to convince lawmakers to raise the minimum wage for all Louisiana workers, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards may have to settle for raising it for just state government employees instead.
The Democratic governor is proposing the state spend $33 million in the next budget cycle to make sure every state government employee – including those who work part-time – makes at least $10 per hour. The change would affect 4,700 workers who currently make less than that rate.
“Since I’ve been governor, I’ve been asking that we increase the state minimum wage from $7.25 an hour,” Edwards told lawmakers in a speech last week.“It’s unacceptable. It was unacceptable in 2016. I think it’s downright immoral in 2023.”
“The state government can and will lead by example and so we will use the powers that I have to raise the minimum wage for state employees,” he said.
About half of the affected jobs are at the Department of Transportation and Development, public colleges and universities, and the Louisiana Department of Health. Custodians, food service workers, laboratory technician assistants and bridge toll collectors are among those who would see their pay increased, according to information the Louisiana Division of Administration provided.
Louisiana is one of 21 states where the minimum wage is aligned with the federal rate of $7.25 per hour, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Neighboring states Texas and Mississippi also have a $7.25 minimum wage. Arkansas requires $11 per hour.
Edwards has proposed increasing the minimum wage for the past seven years, but Republican legislators have voted him down on a routine basis. Business groups strenuously lobby against any minimum wage increase, saying it will lead to higher prices for basic goods and services as well as make Louisiana less attractive to out-of-state investment.
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Last week, the governor said he will bring yet another minimum wage bill forward this year’s legislative session, his final one in office. But it’s still likely to be a tough sell with conservative lawmakers ahead of the upcoming election cycle.
Edwards could have better luck with limiting pay increases to state workers. Several agencies are already struggling to fill their lower-paid positions, and raising the minimum pay might allow them to attract and keep more employees, officials said. But legislators also have the ability to to reject this wage hike for state workers by removing it from the budget plan before voting on it this spring.
Some of Louisiana’s strongest proponents for a minimum wage increase also wish the governor had gone farther with his proposal for state workers.
“I think it is very good that the state is doing this, but it’s not enough,” said Jan Moller, director of the Louisiana Budget Project, a left-leaning fiscal policy organization. “It should start at $15 per hour.”
The federal minimum wage was most recently raised in 2009, but that rate is not tied to inflation. That means the purchasing power of a person earning minimum wage has fallen over the past 14 years as prices have gone up.
The value of the federal minimum wage peaked in 1968, when it was technically under $2 per hour, according to a recent Louisiana Budget Project report. Adjusted for inflation, that rate from 55 years ago would now come out to about $12.23 per hour today, Moller said.
Low-wage workers also aren’t the only state government employees who would see pay increase under the governor’s budget proposal. Edwards wants to raise the rates of merit pay increases for classified state employees subject to civil service rules.
The changes would affect approximately 37,000 government workers, go into effect July 15 and cost $18 million in the next budget cycle. Lawmakers would also have to sign off on this spending before it could go into effect.
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The Louisiana Illuminator is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization driven by its mission to cast light on how decisions are made in Baton Rouge and how they affect the lives of everyday Louisianians, particularly those who are poor or otherwise marginalized.
