DENVER — Colorado’s lowest-paid workers could make even less next year.
DENVER — Colorado’s lowest-paid workers could make even less next year. The state has an adjustable minimum wage, and it could be the first in the nation to drop along with the cost of living. Colorado is one of 10 states that tie minimum wages to inflation. The indexing is thought to protect low-wage workers from having flat wages as living costs go up. But because Colorado’s provision allows wage declines, the minimum wage could actually drop 3 cents an hour next year. It’s currently at $7.28 an hour. It can’t go lower than the federal minimum, $7.25. If the wage is lowered by state labor officials in September, it would be first real minimum wage decrease in any state since the federal minimum wage law was passed in 1938. ______ In photo: In this July 22, 2009 photo, Atlanta resident Marilynn Winn holds her paycheck that shows her minimum wage pay of $6.75 an hour in Atlanta. A federal minimum wage increase to $7.25 an hour takes effect Friday, July 24, 2009. Winn says she worries that the pay boost could lead her boss to make cuts, especially to older workers like herself. (AP Photo/Paul Abell) Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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