The minimum wage in Illinois will increase in the new year.
Effective January 1, 2023, the state minimum wage will increase from $12 to $13 an hour.
For workers who regularly earn tips, the rate will increase to $7.80, however, the state says “these workers must still earn minimum wage after receiving tips, or else the employer must make up the difference.” .
Workers under the age of 18 who work fewer than 650 hours a year will also earn a minimum wage of $10.50 an hour starting January 1.
The minimum wage increase is part of an annual increase that will continue through 2025.
In 2019, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed into law legislation providing a multi-year path to raise Illinois’ minimum wage to $15 an hour and $9 for tipped workers.
Since that legislation was signed, there have been four increases in the minimum wage, with the fifth just days away.
During 2020, most residents saw two increases in the minimum wage: first to $9.25 in January and then to $10 in July.
On January 1, 2021, the low increased once more, to $11 per hour.
And on January 1, 2022, the state minimum wage rose to what it currently is: $12 an hour.
The rate will continue to increase on January 1 of each year until it reaches $15 per hour on January 1, 2025.
“Workers in Illinois deserve a minimum wage that keeps pace with rising costs of living,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement. “That’s why, during my first year as governor, we gradually increased the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Effective January 1, minimum wage workers will receive a raise and businesses will continue to receive tax credits to provide their workforce with a living wage.”
It should be noted that Cook County and the City of Chicago each have their own minimum wage ordinances, and both are higher than the state’s current rate.
In Cook County, on July 1, 2022, the minimum wage increased from $13 to $13.35 for non-tipped workers and from $6.60 to $7.40 for tipped workers.
In Chicago, the minimum wage for non-tipping workers increased on July 1, 2022 in Chicago from $15 to $15.40 for large businesses employing 21 or more workers and $14.50 for small businesses. And for tipped workers, rates increased to $9.24 for large employers and $8.70 for small businesses.
According to a 2020 study by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute at the University of Illinois, more than 1.4 million hourly working adults in Illinois earn less than $15 an hour.
