Flagstaff to raise minimum wage each year starting in 2023

The minimum wage in Flagstaff will increase by $1.30 at the start of the new year, the city announced on Tuesday. 

The current minimum wage is $15.50 per hour while the minimum wage for tipped workers is $13 an hour. 

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2023, the minimum wage in the city will increase to $16.80 and $14.80 per hour, respectively. 

The increase also marks the start of a years-long process of continuing to adjust the minimum wage in the years to come. The new wages will be determined by the state's current minimum wage as well as the Consumer Price Index, a measurement from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics that tracks the average change in the amount consumers pay for a "basket of goods and services."

The city's overall initiative to raise the minimum wage for workers first began when voters passed Proposition 414, or The Minimum Wage Act, in 2016. The act outlined a gradual process to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2021 and then in 2023, ensure future increases coincide with the broader changes in the economy. 

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Based on the city's wage adjustment plan, the wages for both hourly and tipped workers are expected to reach the same amount by 2026.

All Flagstaff workers who work or are expected to work at least 25 hours within a calendar year are covered by this legislation and will experience these increases. 

Contact northern Arizona reporter Lacey Latch at llatch@gannett.com or on social media @laceylatch. Coverage of northern Arizona on azcentral.com and in The Arizona Republic is funded by the nonprofit Report for America and a grant from the Vitalyst Health Foundation in association with The Arizona Republic.