Junior aerospace engineering student worker Safraz Rashdan and Director of the Institute for Economic Forecasting Sean Snaith weigh in on the impact of the Florida minimum wage increase to $15 per hour at UCF. This package aired in the Sept. 30 webcast. Anchored by Kinsley Catarineau.

Gabriella Scozzafava

Florida’s minimum wage rose from $14 to $15 per hour on Wednesday, the final increase in a series of minimum wage hikes over the last five years.

In 2020, voters approved an amendment to Article X, Section 24 of the Florida Constitution that raised the minimum wage to $10 per hour on Sept. 30, 2021, and set additional $1 increases each year until it reached Wednesday’s new rate.

Junior aerospace engineering major Safraz Rashdan said he and his co-workers were happy to receive the increase at their campus Chick-fil-A jobs. Rashdan said he works 20 to 25 hours a week and uses his paychecks to cover groceries, monthly rent and expenses.

While Rashdan hasn’t seen significant changes in his spending habits with the increase, he said he is able to put more money into his savings.

“It’s a big plus for me on my savings account,” Rashdan said. “But at the end of the day, like, my mindset is still the same with how much I budget money, and I don’t think it’ll change. The plus side is I know I have more money now, even if it’s a little, but it’s always nice to have some money in the bank account.”

The law states that employers may not take action against employees for exercising their right to the current minimum wage pay. Both employees and the state can bring civil court action against employers for violating the amendment.

The law doesn’t mean employers’ behavior can’t change with the amendment.

Dr. Sean Snaith, director of the Barry S. Miller College of Business at UCF’s Institute for Economic Forecasting, said the employer response remains yet to be seen, as a lot of businesses are dealing with other changes in the economy, including high prices.

“The thing is, it’s not automatic in terms of everybody keeping their job; everybody keeping the same number of hours,” Snaith said. “You know, when it changes, the behavior of employers can change, and so there’s not necessarily a direct correlation unless, of course, you sustain the job and maintain the number of hours, then that minimum wage will flow through to paychecks.”

Sophomore communication major Yarihana Negron-Sanchez said she relies on her job at Walmart for rent, groceries, daily necessities and transportation. She said her hours are much lower now compared to when she made $14 per hour, which she believes may be correlated.

“I feel like because my hours are being cut, I’m in the same boat that I was in when I was making less,” Negron-Sanchez said. “My spending and budget habits weren’t the best in the first place, but even more so since I don’t make a lot and everything is so expensive.”

Snaith said significant inflation over the years has made prices go up. This means minimum wage doesn’t have the same purchasing power it had back when the ballot initiative was passed, he said.

Still, Florida’s minimum wage rate is now more than double the federal rate of $7.25 per hour, and for students like Rashdan, the bigger challenge is balancing work with academics.

“I think we’re living in our hardest years of our life in order to prepare us for a better future,” Rashdan said. “I feel like people should realize more on how hard it is to live as a college student working a part-time job and managing education and classes.”

Going forward, Florida will adjust the minimum wage rate annually for inflation, according to the amendment.