Amazon increases minimum wages for all US employees to USD 15 per hour
Online retail giant Amazon announced Tuesday it would increase minimum wage of its all US employees to USD 15 per hour, a move welcomed by the Trump Administration and US lawmakers as a significant step that benefits workers.
Effective November 1, the new wage will benefit more than 250,000 Amazon employees, as well as over 100,000 seasonal employees who will be hired at Amazon sites across the country this holiday.
"We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead," said Jeff Bezos, Amazon Founder and CEO.
"We're excited about this change and encourage our competitors and other large employers to join us," said Bezos, who is also owner of The Washington Post.
"We will be working to gain Congressional support for an increase in the federal minimum wage. The current rate of USD 7.25 was set nearly a decade ago," said Jay Carney, senior vice president of Amazon Global Corporate Affairs.
"We intend to advocate for a minimum wage increase ...