ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — New laws are coming with the New Year, and one of those is a minimum wage increase.

  • Florida minimum wage increases 21 cents for 2019
  • Many Florida minimum wage workers will remain at poverty level without other income
  • Some companies, like Amazon, have increased minimum age on their own

Although thousands of workers who make minimum wage will see a hike, the question is will it be enough to make a difference in their lives.

The answer is in most cases is a resounding no.

Tampa Bay Business Journal editor-in-chief Alexis Muellner said while a minimum wage bump is always a good thing for workers, the increase in Florida still keeps those workers below or maybe right at the poverty level if they have no other income.

Effective January 1, Florida's minimum wage jumps 21 cents, from $8.25 an hour to $8.46 an hour. That's an increase of $8.40 per week on a 40-hour work week, or $436.80 for the year.

Despite the bump, out of the 21 states that will see a minimum wage increase in the new year, Florida's minimum wage is third from the bottom, only beating out Nevada and New Mexico.

"Even in a business that may have some tough issues with cost, it behooves you to be thinking about a longer term vision and the importance of minimum wage increases, wage increases in general, because you want to keep people," Muellner said.

Some Florida companies have raised their minimum wages on their own. Amazon, for instance, now pays its workers $15 an hour.

Experts say that not only helps the company retain employees, but builds morale and helps attract more people looking for work.