The Garden Island Staff 9/15/22 The Garden Island Staff 9/15/22

Minimum-wage increase coming Oct. 1

Hawaiʻi’s minimum wage will rise to $12 per hour on Oct. 1, and then will go up by $2 every other year until it reaches $18 per hour on Jan. 1, 2028.

Daeshik Kim Lucas 6/26/22 Daeshik Kim Lucas 6/26/22

Minimum wage hike good for business

On Wednesday, Gov. David Ige signed House Bill 2510 into law, putting Hawaiʻi on a path toward the highest minimum wage in the country. As a small business owner, I say: It’s about time. No one can survive on $10.10 an hour—or just $21,000 a year—in Hawaiʻi.

Andrew L. Pepper 6/23/22 Andrew L. Pepper 6/23/22

Hawaiʻi becomes first state to enact $18 minimum wage

Although, given HB 2510’s nearly six-year phase-in period, other states may reach that mark first, Hawaiʻi nevertheless becomes the first state to officially enact an $18 minimum wage.

Guthrie Scrimgeour 6/23/22 Guthrie Scrimgeour 6/23/22

Ige signs $18 minimum wage increase, tax refund

Hawai‘i’s minimum wage is currently $10.10 an hour. The new law raises the rate in increments over the next several years, starting with $12 on Oct. 1.

Nathan Christophel 6/22/22 Nathan Christophel 6/22/22

Ige signs minimum wage increase, tax rebate bills

Gov. David Ige on Wednesday, during a ceremony at the state Capitol in Honolulu, signed two bills that will help Hawaiʻi’s working individuals and families.

Ben Angarone 6/22/22 Ben Angarone 6/22/22

Ige signs minimum wage increase, tax refund bills into law

The wage will increase to $18 by 2028, while many Hawaiʻi taxpayers will get one-time checks for $300.

Krista Rados 6/22/22 Krista Rados 6/22/22

Governor approves $300 tax refunds, signs law raising minimum wage to $18

Ige said that this “balanced approach” will begin in increments, starting by raising the minimum wage from $10.10 an hour to $12 in October.

Chris Marr 6/22/22 Chris Marr 6/22/22

Hawaiʻi governor signs $18 minimum wage law, first of its kind

Hawaiʻi enacted the nation’s first statewide $18 minimum wage law, with Gov. David Ige’s signature of a bill aimed at fighting poverty among the islands’ workers.

Rev. Sam Domingo 6/14/22 Rev. Sam Domingo 6/14/22

Sign minimum wage increase immediately

Don’t make our lowest-wage earners wait and wonder any longer. They need and deserve this modest raise.

Andrew Gomes and Dan Nakaso 5/8/22 Andrew Gomes and Dan Nakaso 5/8/22

Reflections on Hawaiʻi’s ‘historic’ legislative session shine bright

It’s only 60 days long, but Hawaiʻi’s legislative session this year was a monumental affair featuring some self-reform, historic spending and a return to in-person public participation, all largely in the wake of a bribery scandal, a budget deficit and peak coronavirus infections.

Guthrie Scrimgeour 5/8/22 Guthrie Scrimgeour 5/8/22

State legislature closes an ambitious session

After two years of COVID-induced budget cuts, the state legislature took advantage of a rebounding economy and federal relief funding to enact an ambitious agenda.

Sabrina Bodon 4/29/22 Sabrina Bodon 4/29/22

Bill to raise Hawaiʻi's minimum wage to $18 by 2028 passes out of conference committee

Hawaiʻi Appleseed Executive Director Gavin Thornton said this is a historic moment and "huge leap" in making Hawai’i’s wage livable.

Sabrina Bodon 4/14/22 Sabrina Bodon 4/14/22

Supporters rally to raise minimum wage to $18 as bill advances back to House

At a Labor for Living Wages rally at the Hawai’i State Capitol on Wednesday, Kona Rep. Jeanne Kapela said current wages cannot begin to satisfy the state’s highest cost-of-living standards in the nation.

Nate Hix 4/10/22 Nate Hix 4/10/22

Don’t let House gut the minimum wage bill

Working families and our economy have been suffering for decades with wages that fail to come close to a livable standard. Fortunately both chambers are finally acting like this deficit needs to be closed. We need them to stand by their promises to workers and our economy, and finally push this bill over the finish line and on to the governor’s desk.

Guthrie Scrimgeour 3/23/22 Guthrie Scrimgeour 3/23/22

Senate, House clash over Hawaiʻi minimum wage bills

The vast majority of those who testified at Monday’s LCA meeting favored the 2026 date for the increase, with 113 testifying in support of the 2026 date and 11 individuals testifying in support of the 2028 date. Five favored a Hawai‘i Chamber of Commerce proposal for $15 an hour by 2027, and 11 favored no increase at all.

Andrew Gomes 3/23/22 Andrew Gomes 3/23/22

Hawaiʻi lawmakers tussle over one minimum wage bill

A clash of wills and philosophies among state lawmakers over how to raise Hawaiʻi’s minimum wage now appears centered on one bill at the legislature instead of two.

Guthrie Scrimgeour 2/20/22 Guthrie Scrimgeour 2/20/22

Standing for $18 minimum wage

This demonstration comes after the state House pivoted away from the original minimum-wage proposal, Senate Bill 2018, that would have incrementally increased the minimum wage to $18 an hour by 2026.