Minimum wage in South Carolina

South Carolina has no state minimum wage law including any regulation of overtime. However, if an employee works for an employer who is covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, that employee is entitled to the minimum wage of $5.15 per hour and is paid an overtime rate of not less than 1 ½ times the regular pay after forty hours of work in a workweek.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sometimes referred to as the overtime law insures that wages are paid for all hours worked and that all overtime hours, overtime pay and collected unpaid overtime due is paid to wage earners. In addition, various minimum wage exceptions apply under specific circumstances such as payment to full-time students, youth under age twenty, training wage for first ninety days of employment and tipped employees.

Currently, the unemployment rate in the state of South Carolina is 6.2% and is one of the top five highest unemployment rates in the nation. My research has found that neither the governor nor the legislators in South Carolina have introduced a bill that would change the state minimum wage. In addition, there are no coalition groups trying to get a ballot onto the next general election for voters.

This is unfortunate because minimum wage workers who work forty hours a week still find themselves living below poverty level. The U.S. Census Bureau in 1999 determined that approximately 4.6% of all South Carolina workers are living at the poverty level compared to 4.1% nationwide. Other states that have raised their minimum wage even by $1.00 per hour over the federal minimum wage have found state welfare rolls decline while state revenues increase. Local businesses find less job turn over, more productivity, higher quality employees who are attracted to the job along with a better work ethic from their employees.

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