Sponsors (173)
Introduced April 8, 2025 by Robert C. Scott · Last progress April 8, 2025
The bill raises wages and strengthens legal protections for many low‑paid workers (including tipped, youth, and some disabled workers) while creating meaningful cost and compliance pressures—especially on small businesses and consumers—as well as transitional challenges for agencies and certain employment arrangements.
Millions of low- and middle-income workers will see their hourly pay rise under a phased schedule to $17 and then automatically index to median wage growth, increasing take-home pay and preserving purchasing power over time.
Workers and employers get clear, phased timelines and required 60-day public notice (including Federal Register/DOL publication) for upcoming increases, giving households and small businesses time to plan payroll and budgets.
Tipped service workers will receive steadily higher guaranteed base pay that moves toward parity with the regular minimum wage, raising incomes for many restaurant and service employees.
Small businesses face materially higher labor costs across multiple worker categories, which could force reduced hiring, cut hours, raise prices, or lead to closures—affecting jobs and local businesses widely.
Consumers—especially low- and middle-income households—may see higher prices for goods and services (e.g., dining out) as businesses pass on increased labor costs.
Employers may respond to rising mandated wages by reducing hours, shifting schedules, accelerating automation, or streamlining roles, which can reduce job opportunities or incomes for tipped workers, youth, and some disabled workers.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Phases the federal minimum to $17 by year 5, ties future increases to median wage growth, phases up tipped, youth, and 14(c) wages to parity, and requires DOL notices and transition assistance.
Raises the federal minimum wage on a phased schedule up to $17.00 per hour over five years, then requires annual increases tied to the median hourly wage. It also phases up and eventually ends special lower wage rules for tipped workers, new-hire youth workers under 20, and workers paid under Section 14(c) certificates (workers with disabilities), while requiring the Department of Labor to publish upcoming increases and provide transition assistance. The bill sets precise dollar steps for standard, tipped, youth, and 14(c) wages, creates automatic annual adjustments after the initial multi-year phase-ins, requires employers to inform tipped workers that tips belong to employees, prohibits new 14(c) certificates for employers who did not hold them before enactment, and triggers repeal/sunset of separate subminimum-wage provisions when parity with the regular minimum is reached.