Effective July 1, 2019, the District of Columbia minimum wage will increase to $14.00 per hour, from the current $13.25 per hour. The new rate will apply to all employers, regardless of size. The upcoming increase to the minimum wage is part of a series of increases that began with the passage of the District’s “Fair Shot Minimum Wage Amendment Act of 2016.” The rate will increase again to $15.00 per hour on July 1, 2020 and then increase in successive years starting in 2021 in proportion to the Consumer Price Index increase.
The base minimum wage for tipped employees also will increase on July 1 to $4.45 per hour. If an employee’s averaged weekly hourly tip earnings, added to the base minimum wage, do not equal the new minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Approximately 20 states have increased or will increase their minimum wage rates in 2019, which follows similar increases in 2018. The District of Columbia’s minimum wage rate is among the highest rates in the country.
District of Columbia employers with minimum wage employees should adjust their practices as appropriate.