As of 2023, the federal minimum wage in the United States is seven dollars and twenty five cents ($7.25) an hour. It is lower than the minimum wage in many other developed countries, but higher than the minimum wage in some developing countries. However, each state has the authority to set its own minimum wage rate.
In the state of South Carolina, the state minimum wage has been set at the same rate as the federal minimum wage—seven dollars and twenty-five cents ($7.25 per hour) since July 24th, 2009. This rate applies to all hourly workers, with some exceptions. Full-time and part-time workers over the age of twenty-one, as well as domestic service employees and farm laborers earn the minimum wage. Employers in South Carolina are also required to pay tipped employees the state’s minimum wage, with adjustments for tips received.
In the absence of any state minimum wage increases, inflation will continue to erode the real value of a minimum wage worker’s earnings. The state legislature has thus far refused to raise the state minimum wage from the federal level. This means that in the south-eastern state of South Carolina, the minimum wage rate is likely to remain at $7.25 per hour in 2023.
The impact of a low minimum wage rate on the state’s population is varied. For many South Carolinians, minimum wage provides essential financial support for their families. However, many low-wage workers in the state are forced to take up two or three minimum-wage jobs in order to make ends meet. This often leads to situations of economic precarity, where individuals are unable to move up the economic ladder to gain access to higher-paying jobs.
Furthermore, South Carolina has seen a rise in the cost of living, especially in areas such as housing and healthcare, meaning that even working full-time at a minimum wage job often is not enough to cover basic living expenses. Although many of South Carolina’s large employers pay wages above the minimum wage, according Breanna Smith of the South Carolina Center for Economic Justice, this is not enough to offset rising costs of living.
Given these realities, it is essential that the South Carolina legislature take action to ensure that people are adequately compensated for their labor in order to ensure economic security for all citizens. Raising the state minimum wage to match rising costs of living is a necessary first step and would put more money in the pockets of minimum wage workers and ensure a more stable, prosperous economy for everyone in South Carolina.
