When people learn that the Kansas minimum wage is $2.65 an hour, they tend to react with a look of disbelief. Then they ask, “who could survive on $2.65?!”
As the Raise the Wage campaign grows, we will use this page to share the stories of workers earning below the current federal minimum wage of $5.85 an hour. If you make less than the federal minimum, or know someone who does, we encourage you to get in touch with us so we may hear about your experiences. This is important to our campaign because opponents to raising the minimum wage often claim:
“No one really works for $2.65 an hour.”
Indeed, Kansas has a state minimum wage law that makes this practice legal. The federal law doesn’t cover all workers, and without an adequate state minimum wage in place, there will be workers who slip through the cracks.
We say:
Kansas needs to protect and value all its workers. As long as there is a law allowing employers to pay $2.65 per hour – some will. None should. It is an immorally low wage and a law that is inconsistent with our values.
So, which categories of workers are not covered by the federal minimum wage?
The Kansas Department of Labor estimates that at least 27,000 people work for wages below the new federal minimum of $5.85 an hour. They are:
- workers whose employers gross under $500,000 annually and who do not produce for interstate commerce
- farm workers whose employers use under 500 person-days of farm labor per year
- people with physical or mental disabilities, including those caused by injury
- tipped employees who regularly get more than $30 a month in tips
- students who are employed full time in retail, agriculture, service establishments or colleges
- young people under 20 during their first 90 days of employment
- people who work as companions for the elderly, work for certain small newspapers, work as informal babysitters, work for certain amusement and recreational firms, etc.
Here are the real stories of Kanans who would be affected by raising the wage.
For over four years, I worked as both a tip-earning waiter and as a manager in local restaurants, and I have seen countless cases of my fellow employees walking out with less than the federal minimum wage in their pockets.
Read Zach’s Story
