By definition, minimum wage is the lowest amount of money that an employer is required to pay out to employees per one working hour. However, workers who are under eighteen years of age (twenty-one years in the United States), as well as workers who earn tax-free tips such as waiters, bar tenders and bell boys are not paid the minimum wage. In different countries it may vary, depending on the state of the economy and the living standard in each particular country. There is no global standard mandating a threshold beyond which states cannot go. This article reviews the wage rates in the United States, the United Kingdom and some of the strongest economies in the European Union.
As of July 2009, the US Congress fixed the federal minimum wage rate at $7.25 per working hour but in some states like California, it could be as high as $8 per hour. The states with the highest wage are Washington, Connecticut, and Oregon. The salary is lowest in Wyoming and Georgia. Santa Fe, the capital of New Mexico, has the highest minimum wage, set at $9.85. As per the US territories, the rate varies according to industry sectors in American Samoa and Puerto Rico. In addition, the workers who earn tips are paid a subminimum wage, which is currently at $2.13 per working hour.
The situation in the United Kingdom is a bit different, as the minimum salary there depends largely on the employee's age: companies are required to pay GBP 5.80 per hour to workers aged 22 and older, while those between 18 and 21 years of age receive a so-called "development rate" which is GBP 4.83 per hour. The minimum wage for workers under 18, who are no longer of compulsory school age is GBP 3.57.
The minimum wage rate in the member states of the European Union is calculated on a monthly or hourly basis. It is set either by the government or by a national agreement between representatives of the different economic sectors in each particular country. There is a small group of EU member states where the wage differs in the various sectors of the economy. In addition, the minimum wages in the European Union may vary drastically from just 123 Euros per month in the poorest EU member state, Bulgaria, to 1642 Euros gross minimum wage in Luxemburg as of January 2009. Ireland has the second highest wage in the European Union, set at 1,462 Euros per month, followed by Belgium (EUR 1,387 per month), the Netherlands (EUR 1382/month), and France (EUR 1,321 per month). For comparison, the minimum wage rate in the Czech Republic is just EUR 306 per month and in Slovakia - 296 Euros per month. The minimum ware rate is 232 Euros per month in Lithuania and 153 euro per month in Romania. Also, there are EU member states like Germany and Italy, where salaries are established by means of collective bargaining.
By John P. Stevenson
As of July 2009, the US Congress fixed the federal minimum wage rate at $7.25 per working hour but in some states like California, it could be as high as $8 per hour. The states with the highest wage are Washington, Connecticut, and Oregon. The salary is lowest in Wyoming and Georgia. Santa Fe, the capital of New Mexico, has the highest minimum wage, set at $9.85. As per the US territories, the rate varies according to industry sectors in American Samoa and Puerto Rico. In addition, the workers who earn tips are paid a subminimum wage, which is currently at $2.13 per working hour.
The situation in the United Kingdom is a bit different, as the minimum salary there depends largely on the employee's age: companies are required to pay GBP 5.80 per hour to workers aged 22 and older, while those between 18 and 21 years of age receive a so-called "development rate" which is GBP 4.83 per hour. The minimum wage for workers under 18, who are no longer of compulsory school age is GBP 3.57.
The minimum wage rate in the member states of the European Union is calculated on a monthly or hourly basis. It is set either by the government or by a national agreement between representatives of the different economic sectors in each particular country. There is a small group of EU member states where the wage differs in the various sectors of the economy. In addition, the minimum wages in the European Union may vary drastically from just 123 Euros per month in the poorest EU member state, Bulgaria, to 1642 Euros gross minimum wage in Luxemburg as of January 2009. Ireland has the second highest wage in the European Union, set at 1,462 Euros per month, followed by Belgium (EUR 1,387 per month), the Netherlands (EUR 1382/month), and France (EUR 1,321 per month). For comparison, the minimum wage rate in the Czech Republic is just EUR 306 per month and in Slovakia - 296 Euros per month. The minimum ware rate is 232 Euros per month in Lithuania and 153 euro per month in Romania. Also, there are EU member states like Germany and Italy, where salaries are established by means of collective bargaining.
By John P. Stevenson
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