Yes, even little Guam way out into the Pacific Ocean has caught minimum wage fever. Just as with many of the states in the continental United States that have changed their minimum wage through legislation or through voter initiatives, the territory of Guam has recently also changed its minimum wage.
As of July 18, 2006, the territory of Guam has had a new minimum wage. That was the day that the Governor of the territory, Gov. Felix P. Camacho, signed the new minimum wage bill into law, which will increase the territory’s minimum wage from where it is now at $5.15 per hour to where it will be this coming July—$5.75 per hour. The law is set to affect the wages of nearly 1,600 in the territory that currently earn less than $5.75 per hour. And again, I know, I know, don’t even bother to ask. I don’t know how many employers this new minimum wage will affect.
Some estimates, though, also indicate that the new minimum wage in Guam will also affect more than just that number of employees. Some expect the new minimum wage in Guam to affect the entire bottom 10 percent of the work force, in terms of wages, which would then equal about 5,580 workers in Guam.
Tied to the new minimum wage are also other sorts of initiatives to help both workers and their employers. For instance, the bill also increases efforts in apprenticeships and training programs, which will be run by the Department of Labor along with help from the Guam Public School System and the University of Guam, as well as the Guam Community College. The training effort is supposed to match the increasing employer demand for skilled laborers in Guam, especially since many of the best trained Guam workers leave the island for more opportunities elsewhere.
