Increase Coming for Illinois Minimum Wage
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send your username and password to you.
Minimum Wage Up to $12 an hour on New Year’s Day
The minimum wage in Illinois is set to increase another dollar on Saturday, Jan. 1, 2022. The new wage will be $12 an hour.
Minimum wage workers are being encouraged to keep a close eye on their paychecks in the new year. Any time worked in 2022 must reflect the new $12 an hour minimum wage.
Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation in 2019 putting the state on the path to a $15 an hour minimum wage by 2025. There have been three increases in the minimum wage since the governor signed the wage hike legislation.
Prior to the increases in 2020, the last time Illinois raised its minimum wage was more than a decade ago in 2010 when it increased to $8.25. In Chicago, the minimum wage is already $15 an hour for employers that have 21 or more employees. It’s $14 an hour for smaller businesses.
The new law maintains provisions for employers to count gratuities to offset wages for workers, such as food servers, who regularly earn tips. Tipped employees may be paid 60 percent of the hourly minimum wage. However, these workers must still earn the minimum wage after receiving tips or the employer will make up the difference.
Workers under 18 years old and who work fewer than 650 hours in a year will earn a minimum wage of $9.25 per hour beginning Jan. 1. The youth minimum wage rate will gradually rise to $13 an hour by 2025.
All employers in Illinois are required to post the “Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws” where notices to employees are regularly posted. The color poster, which also covers other
Illinois labor laws, can be found in English and Spanish at /www2.illinois.gov/idol.
Employees with problems regarding the minimum wage can file a complaint with IDOL at www2.illinois.gov/idol/Pages/Complaints.aspx or by calling the Minimum Wage Complaints line at 312-793-2800.
