Saturday, April 27, 2024
Fair, 67°Wind: 11.5 mph, S
Welcome to our new web site!
To give our readers a chance to experience all that our new website has to offer, we have made all content freely avaiable, through October 1, 2018.
During this time, print and digital subscribers will not need to log in to view our stories or e-editions.
Workers on a minimum wage salary will see a modest increase in pay beginning this week.
Workers making $12 per hour will see their hourly wage increase to $12.36. Workers on tipped wages will see an increase from $4.78 to $4.95. The change only affects workers and businesses in the city of Las Cruces.
The increase stems from a 2014 ordinance that increased the minimum wage and dictated regular increases based on the city’s calculation of the Consumer Price Index, or CPI. CPI measures the change in the price of goods over time and is meant to track inflation.
According to a news release, the city compares its CPI calculation to the minimum wage established by the state of New Mexico. The city then enforces the higher number.
“In 2024, the State’s minimum wage is scheduled to remain at $12.00 an hour,” the news release announcing the increase said. “The city, however, will adopt the minimum wage based on the City ordinance because it is higher than the State’s wage.”
The change went into effect on Jan. 1.
According to the ordinance, the city considers employers who break the law by paying workers less than the minimum wage a public nuisance. That allows workers to sue employers. Successful lawsuits enable workers to collect lost wages along with interest on lost wages. They also force the employer to pay the attorney fees
