WILMINGTON (KYW Newsradio) — Gov. John Carney signed a bill Monday to raise the minimum wage in Delaware to $15 an hour.
It will reach that number in 2025. The first increase will be January 1, 2022.
“This is a big day,” said Carney. “And a happy day for workers across the state of Delaware.”
He got a round of applause as he put the pen to the paper with labor leaders, advocates and General Assembly members looking on.
“When you think about our work as public officials, there’s nothing more important than giving everybody that opportunity,” Carney added.
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“To go to work every day, to support themselves and their families, to make a better life for their children.”
State Senator Jack Walsh (D-Christiana) is the prime sponsor of this bill.
“The legislation boils down to one core principle: Someone who puts in a hard day's work deserves to earn enough to put a roof over their head and food on the table,” he said.
Walsh acknowledged some people are worried this could eliminate jobs, but he said that’s not true. It hasn’t really happened yet during any previous minimum wage increases in Delaware.
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“The reason is simple: Putting more money in people’s pockets means more bills getting paid and more money going into cash registers, which results in a better economy for all of us,” he explained.
Walsh said he spoke with business owners before drafting this bill.
Delaware’s Department of Labor reports more than 34,000 people currently earn the bare minimum wage, and more than 53,000 people right now are making $10 or less an hour.
Delaware becomes the ninth state to bump minimum wage to $15.
New Jersey is also on that list. The Garden State will hit $15 in 2024, a year before Delaware.
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