In almost all areas of law, there is some interaction between federal law and state law because when it comes to many areas, both have laws that address and govern that issue. Here in Georgia, that’s true for many employment law issues, including everything from age discrimination to minimum wage to overtime pay. The key in any situation is whether federal law or state law applies to your situation. Doing this often requires a thorough understanding of the law, so it pays to have an experienced Atlanta minimum wage attorney handle your case.
There’s even an entire subreddit (#todayilearned) on the popular Internet community Reddit dedicated to people sharing things they’ve just learned.
What is the Atlanta Living Wage?
Since Atlanta is a large and expansive city with a large population and a competitive job market, I would expect the minimum wage to be higher for the city.
But unfortunately for many, Atlanta still follows the state minimum wage rate of $7.25 per hour for many of its workers.
A minimum wage Atlanta resident earns $290 in gross wages each week. After taxes, he makes about $1,000 a month.
More than half of the states have a minimum wage higher than the federal minimum wage, including Florida ($8.46/hr), West Virginia ($8.75/hr), and Arkansas ($9.25/hr ). Georgia lags behind, being among a dwindling minority of states that only pay what the federal government requires. Dozens of cities and counties also have minimum wage ordinances, including St. Paul, Minnesota ($9.86/hour for large employers) and Albuquerque, New Mexico ($9.20/hour). Atlanta will soon pay city workers $15 an hour, but has no such ordinance for private employers.
In 2018, the AJC reported that the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Atlanta was $1,450 per month: