The state-wide minimum wage for Montana is $9.95 per hour as of January 01, 2023.
Montana minimum wage in 2021: US$8.75 (effective January 1, 2021)
Montana minimum wage in 2020: US$8.65
Montana minimum wage in 2000: US$4-US$5.15
Montana minimum wage in 1980: US$2 ($6.70 after inflation adjustment)
For ongoing Montana minimum wage increases each year, the department of labor and industry calculates the cost-of-living adjustment based on an increase in the consumer price index (CPI).
All Montana employees working over 40 hours in a work week are entitled an overtime wage of at least 1.5 times their regular hourly pay rate - therefore, the overtime minimum wage in MT is.
In addition to any Montana-specific minimum wage exemptions described above, the Federal Fair Labor Standards act defines special minimum wage rates applicable to certain types of workers.
Montana Code Annotated 39-3-409 requires the Montana Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) to adjust the Montana minimum wage for inflation using the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers (CPI-U).
Given the economic upheaval, it is not surprising that some Montana lawmakers are considering implementing minimum wage increases in an attempt to provide relief to their struggling constituents.
It is unwise for Montana lawmakers to push minimum wage hikes, which result in business closings and increased unemployment, especially when joblessness has skyrocketed due to the ongoing pandemic.
The minimum wage increases in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont and Washington will be 28 cents to 37 cents an hour, according to the National Employment Law Project.
The Montana Department of Labor & Industry calculates the next minimum wage each August to adjust for cost of living increases as applicable and rounds the amount to the nearest five cents.
If there is no increase in the CPI, then generally, there is no Montana minimum wage increase, but if there is, the min wage per hour is increased by this amount and rounded up to the nearest 5 cents.
Although the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the federal wage and hour law, and the laws of some states allow employers to pay tipped employees a lower minimum wage, Montana law does not.
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