Minimum wage workers in 18 states will get a pay hike next week when higher wage floors go into effect around the country for 2018. President Barack Obama stumped for a minimum wage hike throughout his second term, but Republicans in Congress blocked Democratic proposals from coming up for a vote. Minimum wage bumps tend to be popular with the general public, with support often crossing partisan lines. Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia now require a higher minimum wage than the federal one. Just this year, Republicans in Missouri passed a preemption law to retroactively kill a minimum wage hike enacted by city leaders in St. Louis.

Source: Huffington Post December 31, 2017 12:56 UTC