Tracking Hawaiʻi paychecks versus living costs since 1969

The state’s minimum wage increased to $12 an hour in October. Under Act 114, passed this year by the state Legislature, the minimum wage will increase $2 every two years until reaching $18 in 2028, making Hawai‘i the first state to enact such a high minimum wage.

Over 192,000 local workers are expected to benefit from this policy, according to the National Employment Law Project, which advocates for workers’ rights. That includes more than 110,000 women and 168,000 workers of color.

Gavin Thornton, executive director of the Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice, says this increase is long overdue. The center has pushed for an increase for years, and Thornton says he thinks this year’s efforts were finally successful because of a broader awareness that Hawai‘i’s economy is no longer working for ordinary people.

An estimated 59 percent of local households experienced financial hardship because of the pandemic—that’s about 78,000 more households than pre-Covid, according to the Hawaii Data Collaborative. Those households include working families that can barely afford housing, transportation, child care, health care and other necessities, plus families living below the poverty level.

Thornton says the minimum wage should be a living wage: “As a society, we should have a principle of anyone that’s working 40 hours a week should be able to put a roof over their head and food on the table,” he says. “My hope is that is gaining broader acceptance.”

He adds $18 an hour is not enough for a minimum wage worker to get by today—and it likely won’t be enough in 2028 because of increases in inflation. Hawaiʻi, he says, will need to keep that in mind when 2028 rolls around. “But it’s going to be a dramatic improvement and one we’re very excited about.”