Maine, Portland minimum wages jump on Jan. 1

It is unclear how many workers this will affect – many businesses have already raised hourly wages for many positions to try to compete in a labor market in which staffing shortages have made it difficult to fill many jobs.

But James Myall, an economic policy analyst for the Maine Center for Economic Policy, said the increases are important, even if most Maine workers are already earning well above the mandated state minimum, let alone the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.

The state’s minimum wage is based on a regional measure of the cost of living. The 8.2% state wage increase and $1 an hour increase in Portland will help minimum wage earners cover housing, heating, food and gasoline costs that rose substantially last year as inflation soared to levels not seen in decades, Myall said.

Click here to read the full story, first published January 2, 2023 in the Portland Press Herald.