Montana's minimum wage rising 75 cents to $9.95 in January

HELENA (AP) — Montana's minimum wage is increasing 75 cents an hour to $9.95 starting on Jan. 1, the Department of Labor and Industry announced.

It's the largest inflationary increase since voters passed a ballot initiative to increase the minimum wage by $1 an hour to $6.15 in January 2007 and then make inflationary changes each year.

An estimated 23,500 Montana workers, or 5% of the workforce, received hourly wages less than $9.95 in 2022 and are likely to receive higher wages due to the 2023 minimum wage increase, state labor officials said.

The state calculates the cost-of-living adjustment based on the increase in the Consumer Price Index, which was 8.26% from August 2021 to August 2022.

Montanan's minimum wage increased by 45 cents to $9.20 for 2022 after a 5.25% increase in the CPI.

The federal minimum wage has remained at $7.25 an hour since 2009 and applies in 20 states, including Idaho, North Dakota and Wyoming.