Federal Minimum Wage
Increases Pass Congress

On Thursday, May 24, the U.S. Congress passed increases in the federal minimum wage as a part of the Iraq war funding bill. The minimum wage provisions increase the federal minimum wage in three steps: 1. Sixty (60) days after enactment (signature of the president), the minimum wage will increase from $5.15 to $5.85. That should be approximately July 31, depending upon the exact date the president signs the bill. 2. One year after the first increase (approximately July 31, 2008), the increase goes to $6.55 per hour. 3. One year after that increase (approximately July 31, 2009), the increase goes to $7.25 per hour.

During the 2007 session of the Indiana General Assembly, our legislature passed and Governor Daniels signed into law House Bill 1027 (Rep. John Day-D-Indianapolis), which makes the state minimum wage the exact same amount as the federal law whenever federal law is changed. Certainly no manufacturers are directly affected by the state minimum wage law, which applies only to those not covered by the federal law (employers of two or more with less than $500,000 annual revenue and no connection of any kind to interstate commerce). Inasmuch as having a loan from a bank that operates in interstate commerce or having a credit card that puts a business in interstate commerce, only a very few businesses in Indiana are covered by the state law. 

Shortly, the U.S. Department of Labor will be requiring new posters advising employees of their rights under the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act. You will be affected in that way, and you’ll need new posters.

Because we knew that some change in federal law was almost certain to pass, we worked hard to make sure that changes in Indiana’s law would not operate out of sync with the federal law, creating a complex and confusing set of timetables and posting requirements changing almost monthly. We achieved that in the legislature, and now the congress has acted making our plan for the state minimum wage law work as we hoped it would in the event of a federal law change.

Immigration Bill Update
We continue to monitor the debate and efforts to amend the immigration bill being discussed in the U.S. Senate, as reported earlier this week. That debate and efforts to amend that bill continue on a daily basis. The focus of the debate remains on provisions other than the employer responsibility parts right now, but we are working with national organizations including the National Association of Manufacturers to make changes in those sections regarding employer requirements.

We will continue to keep you advised on the immigration bill’s progress (if any), as well as the exact dates the minimum wage bill will be in effect.   

Indiana Manufacturers Association, One American Square, Suite 2400, Indianapolis, IN 46282 Phone:  800-462-7762  Fax:  317-231-2320  Web site: www.imaweb.com