SJR 854 & HJR 1485 introduced; would ask voters to authorize Legislature to set a lower minimum wage for people with felony convictions, under-21 workers, people incarcerated & others "hard-to-hire."
On November 3, 2020, voters said ‘yes’ to Amendment 2, making Florida the eighth state to pass a $15 per hour minimum wage. Floridians are making clear that it’s time to move the needle on shared prosperity: the amendment will reduce historical pay inequities experienced by women and people of color and increase the income of more than 1 in 4 Florida workers, as our report shows. It will also life millions of people in our state out of poverty. Voters across the state recognize that it’s a critical time to boost pay for working families.
A large share of workers in Florida’s retail sector stand to benefit from Amendment 2’s gradual minimum wage boost: 42.1 percent of retail workers — 158,973 Floridians — will see their pay increase.
Florida Policy Institute also estimates that Amendment 2 will bring in over $575 million in new sales tax revenue for the state by the time it’s fully implemented.
“On just $9.70 an hour, I have no choice but to spend every waking minute thinking about how to stretch the pennies between food and rent. You shouldn’t have to work two full-time jobs just to scrape by, and still struggle to keep a roof over your family’s head.” - Faith B., a fast food restaurant cashier in Lakeland, Florida and mother of five children.
