II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 53 

To provide for increases in the Federal minimum wage, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 26, 2021 

Mr. SANDERS (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. SCHUMER, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. 

BENNET, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. BROWN, Ms. CANTWELL, 

Mr. CARDIN, Mr. CASEY, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mr. DURBIN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. HEINRICH, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. KAINE, Ms. 

KLOBUCHAR, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. LUJA ́N, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. 

MURPHY, Mr. PADILLA, Mr. PETERS, Mr. OSSOFF, Mr. REED, Ms. 

ROSEN, Mr. SCHATZ, Ms. SMITH, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, 

Mr. WARNER, Mr. WARNOCK, Ms. WARREN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, and Mr. 

WYDEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To provide for increases in the Federal minimum wage, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Raise the Wage Act 

5 of 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor 

3 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(a)(1)) is amended 

4 to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(1) except as otherwise provided in this sec6 tion, not less than— 

7 ‘‘(A) $9.50 an hour, beginning on the ef8 fective date under section 7 of the Raise the 

9 Wage Act of 2021; 

10 ‘‘(B) $11.00 an hour, beginning 1 year 

11 after such effective date; 

12 ‘‘(C) $12.50 an hour, beginning 2 years 

13 after such effective date; 

14 ‘‘(D) $14.00 an hour, beginning 3 years 

15 after such effective date; 

16 ‘‘(E) $15.00 an hour, beginning 4 years 

17 after such effective date; and 

18 ‘‘(F) beginning on the date that is 5 years 

19 after such effective date, and annually there20 after, the amount determined by the Secretary 

21 under subsection (h);’’. 

22 (b) DETERMINATION BASED ON INCREASE IN THE

23 MEDIAN HOURLY WAGE OF ALL EMPLOYEES.—Section 

24 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

25 206) is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(h)(1) Not later than each date that is 90 days be2 fore a new minimum wage determined under subsection 

3 (a)(1)(F) is to take effect, the Secretary shall determine 

4 the minimum wage to be in effect under this subsection 

5 for each period described in subsection (a)(1)(F). The 

6 wage determined under this subsection for a year shall 

7 be— 

8 ‘‘(A) not less than the amount in effect under 

9 subsection (a)(1) on the date of such determination; 

10 ‘‘(B) increased from such amount by the annual 

11 percentage increase, if any, in the median hourly 

12 wage of all employees as determined by the Bureau 

13 of Labor Statistics; and 

14 ‘‘(C) rounded up to the nearest multiple of 

15 $0.05. 

16 ‘‘(2) In calculating the annual percentage increase in 

17 the median hourly wage of all employees for purposes of 

18 paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary, through the Bureau of 

19 Labor Statistics, shall compile data on the hourly wages 

20 of all employees to determine such a median hourly wage 

21 and compare such median hourly wage for the most recent 

22 year for which data are available with the median hourly 

23 wage determined for the preceding year.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. TIPPED EMPLOYEES. 

2 (a) BASE MINIMUM WAGE FOR TIPPED EMPLOYEES

3 AND TIPS RETAINED BY EMPLOYEES.—Section 

4 3(m)(2)(A)(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

5 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)(i)) is amended to read as fol6 lows: 

7 ‘‘(i) the cash wage paid such employee, which 

8 for purposes of such determination shall be not less 

9 than— 

10 ‘‘(I) for the 1-year period beginning on the 

11 effective date under section 7 of the Raise the 

12 Wage Act of 2021, $4.95 an hour; 

13 ‘‘(II) for each succeeding 1-year period 

14 until the hourly wage under this clause equals 

15 the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for 

16 such period, an hourly wage equal to the 

17 amount determined under this clause for the 

18 preceding year, increased by the lesser of— 

19 ‘‘(aa) $2.00; or 

20 ‘‘(bb) the amount necessary for the 

21 wage in effect under this clause to equal 

22 the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for 

23 such period, rounded up to the nearest 

24 multiple of $0.05; and 

25 ‘‘(III) for each succeeding 1-year period 

26 after the increase made pursuant to subclause 


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1 (II), the minimum wage in effect under section 

2 6(a)(1); and’’. 

3 (b) TIPS RETAINED BY EMPLOYEES.—Section 

4 3(m)(2)(A) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

5 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)) is amended— 

6 (1) in the second sentence of the matter fol7 lowing clause (ii), by striking ‘‘of this subsection, 

8 and all tips received by such employee have been re9 tained by the employee’’ and inserting ‘‘of this sub10 section. Any employee shall have the right to retain 

11 any tips received by such employee’’; and 

12 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘An em13 ployer shall inform each employee of the right and 

14 exception provided under the preceding sentence.’’. 

15 (c) SCHEDULED REPEAL OF SEPARATE MINIMUM

16 WAGE FOR TIPPED EMPLOYEES.— 

17 (1) TIPPED EMPLOYEES.—Section 3(m)(2)(A) 

18 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

19 203(m)(2)(A)), as amended by subsections (a) and 

20 (b), is further amended by striking the sentence be21 ginning with ‘‘In determining the wage an employer 

22 is required to pay a tipped employee,’’ and all that 

23 follows through ‘‘of this subsection.’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘The wage required to be paid to a tipped employee 

25 shall be the wage set forth in section 6(a)(1).’’. 


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1 (2) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.—Subsection (i) 

2 of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

3 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by section 5, is 

4 further amended by striking ‘‘or in accordance with 

5 subclause (II) or (III) of section 3(m)(2)(A)(i)’’. 

6 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

7 by paragraphs (1) and (2) shall take effect on the 

8 date that is 1 day after the date on which the hourly 

9 wage under subclause (III) of section 3(m)(2)(A)(i) 

10 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

11 203(m)(2)(A)(i)), as amended by subsection (a), 

12 takes effect. 

13 (d) PENALTIES.—Section 16 of the Fair Labor 

14 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216) is amended— 

15 (1) in the third sentence of subsection (b), by 

16 inserting ‘‘or used’’ after ‘‘kept’’; and 

17 (2) in the second sentence of subsection (e)(2), 

18 by inserting ‘‘or used’’ after ‘‘kept’’. 

19 SEC. 4. NEWLY HIRED EMPLOYEES WHO ARE LESS THAN 20 

20 YEARS OLD. 

21 (a) BASE MINIMUM WAGE FOR NEWLY HIRED EM22 PLOYEES WHO ARE LESS THAN 20 YEARS OLD.—Section 

23 6(g)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

24 U.S.C. 206(g)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘a wage which 


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1 is not less than $4.25 an hour.’’ and inserting the fol2 lowing: ‘‘a wage at a rate that is not less than— 

3 ‘‘(A) for the 1-year period beginning on the ef4 fective date under section 7 of the Raise the Wage 

5 Act of 2021, $6.00 an hour; 

6 ‘‘(B) for each succeeding 1-year period until the 

7 hourly wage under this paragraph equals the wage 

8 in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, an 

9 hourly wage equal to the amount determined under 

10 this paragraph for the preceding year, increased by 

11 the lesser of— 

12 ‘‘(i) $1.75; or 

13 ‘‘(ii) the amount necessary for the wage in 

14 effect under this paragraph to equal the wage 

15 in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, 

16 rounded up to the nearest multiple of $0.05; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(C) for each succeeding 1-year period after the 

19 increase made pursuant to subparagraph (B)(ii), the 

20 minimum wage in effect under section 6(a)(1).’’. 

21 (b) SCHEDULED REPEAL OF SEPARATE MINIMUM

22 WAGE FOR NEWLY HIRED EMPLOYEES WHO ARE LESS

23 THAN 20 YEARS OLD.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6(g) of the Fair 

2 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(g)), as 

3 amended by subsection (a), shall be repealed. 

4 (2) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.—Subsection (i) 

5 of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

6 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by section 

7 3(c)(2), is further amended by striking ‘‘or subpara8 graph (B) or (C) of subsection (g)(1),’’. 

9 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The repeal and amend10 ment made by paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively, 

11 shall take effect on the date that is 1 day after the 

12 date on which the hourly wage under subparagraph 

13 (C) of section 6(g)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards 

14 Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(g)(1)), as amended by 

15 subsection (a), takes effect. 

16 SEC. 5. PUBLICATION OF NOTICE. 

17 Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

18 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by the preceding sections, 

19 is further amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(i) Not later than 60 days prior to the effective date 

21 of any increase in the required wage determined under 

22 subsection (a)(1) or subparagraph (B) or (C) of subsection 

23 (g)(1), or in accordance with subclause (II) or (III) of sec24 tion 3(m)(2)(A)(i) or section 14(c)(1)(A), the Secretary 

25 shall publish in the Federal Register and on the website 


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1 of the Department of Labor a notice announcing each in2 crease in such required wage.’’. 

3 SEC. 6. PROMOTING ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY FOR IN4 DIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 

5 (a) WAGES.— 

6 (1) TRANSITION TO FAIR WAGES FOR INDIVID7 UALS WITH DISABILITIES.—Subparagraph (A) of 

8 section 14(c)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

9 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)(1)) is amended to read as 

10 follows: 

11 ‘‘(A) at a rate that equals or exceeds, for each 

12 year, the greater of— 

13 ‘‘(i)(I) $5.00 an hour, beginning on the ef14 fective date under section 7 of the Raise the 

15 Wage Act of 2021; 

16 ‘‘(II) $7.50 an hour, beginning 1 year 

17 after such effective date; 

18 ‘‘(III) $10.00 an hour, beginning 2 years 

19 after such effective date; 

20 ‘‘(IV) $12.50 an hour, beginning 3 years 

21 after such effective date; 

22 ‘‘(V) $15.00 an hour, beginning 4 years 

23 after such effective date; and 


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1 ‘‘(VI) the wage rate in effect under section 

2 6(a)(1), beginning 5 years after such effective 

3 date; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) if applicable, the wage rate in effect 

5 on the day before the date of enactment of the 

6 Raise the Wage Act of 2021 for the employ7 ment, under a special certificate issued under 

8 this paragraph, of the individual for whom the 

9 wage rate is being determined under this sub10 paragraph,’’. 

11 (2) PROHIBITION ON NEW SPECIAL CERTIFI12 CATES; SUNSET.—Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor 

13 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)) (as 

14 amended by paragraph (1)) is further amended by 

15 adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITION ON NEW SPECIAL CERTIFI17 CATES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Sec18 retary shall not issue a special certificate under this 

19 subsection to an employer that was not issued a spe20 cial certificate under this subsection before the date 

21 of enactment of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021. 

22 ‘‘(7) SUNSET.—Beginning on the day after the 

23 date on which the wage rate described in paragraph 

24 (1)(A)(i)(VI) takes effect, the authority to issue spe25 cial certificates under paragraph (1) shall expire, 


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1 and no special certificates issued under paragraph 

2 (1) shall have any legal effect. 

3 ‘‘(8) TRANSITION ASSISTANCE.—Upon request, 

4 the Secretary shall provide— 

5 ‘‘(A) technical assistance and information 

6 to employers issued a special certificate under 

7 this subsection for the purposes of— 

8 ‘‘(i) assisting such employers to com9 ply with this subsection, as amended by 

10 the Raise the Wage Act of 2021; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) ensuring continuing employment 

12 opportunities for individuals with disabil13 ities receiving a special minimum wage 

14 rate under this subsection; and 

15 ‘‘(B) information to individuals employed 

16 at a special minimum wage rate under this sub17 section, which may include referrals to Federal 

18 or State entities with expertise in competitive 

19 integrated employment.’’. 

20 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

21 by this subsection shall take effect on the date of en22 actment of this Act. 

23 (b) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.— 

24 (1) AMENDMENT.—Subsection (i) of section 6 

25 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 


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1 206), as amended by section 4(b)(2), is further 

2 amended by striking ‘‘or section 14(c)(1)(A),’’. 

3 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

4 by paragraph (1) shall take effect on the day after 

5 the date on which the wage rate described in para6 graph (1)(A)(i)(VI) of section 14(c) of the Fair 

7 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)), as 

8 amended by subsection (a)(1), takes effect. 

9 SEC. 7. GENERAL EFFECTIVE DATE. 

10 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, or the 

11 amendments made by this Act, this Act and the amend12 ments made by this Act shall take effect on the first day 

13 of the third month that begins after the date of the enact14 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


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