A new report from the Louisiana Budget Project shows that 193,000 Louisiana workers – nearly 1 in 10 – would get a much-needed pay raise if policymakers established a state minimum wage of $8.50 per hour.

The report by policy director Jeanie Donovan also shows how workers in Louisiana’s largest cities would benefit if legislators were to lift the state law that forbids local control of minimum wage ordinances. Louisiana is one of only five states without a minimum wage law, and follows the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.

The report, “It’s Time to Raise the Wage in Louisiana,” shows how changes to minimum wage policies in Louisiana would impact workers, including:

• The impact on workers if the Legislature established a statewide minimum wage of $8.50 per hour that would take effect in 2020.
• The impact on workers in various cities if the Legislature allows municipalities to establish their own wage standards. The report shows how workers in each of Louisiana’s seven largest metro areas would fare under a minimum wage of $8.50, $10, and $12 per hour.

“An hour of hard work should be worth more than $7.25. Louisiana workers deserve better,” Donovan said. “The Legislature’s refusal to raise the minimum wage has left tens of thousands of working families living below the poverty line. If our elected officials can’t agree to a statewide minimum wage, the least they can do is let their constituents decide at the ballot by passing Senate Bill 252.”

To read the full report, click here.