Amazon institutes $15 minimum wage for all US employees, including temps

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Amazon announced today it would raise its minimum wage for all US employees to $15 per hour. The change will take effect on November 1, and will apply to full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal workers. Overall, more than 250,000 Amazon workers will get a pay raise from this, in addition to more than 100,000 seasonal employees that the company hires at various times throughout the year.

“We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead,” Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said in a statement.

The company’s public policy team will also be advocating for an increase in the federal minimum wage, which is currently $7.25 per hour. The federal minimum wage hasn’t risen since 2009.