Federal minimum wage increases 11 percent

(AP) - Labor Secretary Hilda Solis says this week'sincrease in the minimum wage will generate an extra $5.5 billion inconsumer spending over the next year.
The federal minimum wage increases by 11 percent on Friday, from$6.55 to $7.25 an hour.
It is the third and final step of a three-year phased increasein the rate. Congress boosted the minimum wage to $5.85 an hour in2007 and it rose to $6.55 an hour last year. The latest change willbenefit workers in 30 states where the state minimum wage is now ator below the federal minimum wage, or there is no state minimumwage.
United States Department of Labor