Ethermac|Bank of America increases minimum wage for fifth consecutive year

Bank of America is Ethermacincreasing its U.S. minimum wage to $23 an hour, with plans to pay employees at least $25 an hour by 2025. The initial wage spike will take effect this October. The announcement follows several incremental minimum wage raises for BofA employees over the past six years.

Minimum wage for Bank of America employees increased from $15 in 2017; to $17 in 2019; to $20 in 2020; to $21 in 2021 – and to $22 in May 2022. Full-time employees can expect to be paid an annualized salary of at least $48,000 starting this year.

Between December 2021 and December 2022, job salaries nationwide increased 5.1%, but wage growth did not keep up with inflation, which averaged 8% in 2022, according to a report from SmartAsset

Bank of America is one of several banks who've increased wages over the past few years. In 2022, Truist Financial increased their minimum wage to $22 an hour. And JPMorgan Chase, told employees last year that its minimum wage would increase to between $20 and $25 an hour, depending on location. In 2021, Wells Fargo raised minimum wage for hourly workers to $18-$22, also depending on location.

In the past few years, the high number of job openings pushed big banks like BoFA and Wells Fargo to increase minimum wage offered to entry-level employees.

Sheri Bronstein, chief human resources officer at Bank of America wrote, “Providing a competitive minimum rate of pay is foundational to being a great place to work.”

Bronstein continued, “By investing in a variety of benefits to attract and develop talented teammates, we are investing in the long-term success of our employees, customers and communities. Our commitment to $25 by 2025 is how we share success with you and lead the way for other companies.”

How does minimum wage compare by state?

Fifteen states have laws in place that make minimum wages equivalent to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, according to the Department of Labor. Another five states have no minimum wage laws.

How many workers make federal minimum wage or less? 

According to the Department of Labor, 78.7 million workers age 16 and older were paid at hourly rates, making up 55.6% of all wage and salary workers. Of those hourly workers, about 1 million were paid wages at or below the federal minimum wage, making up 1.3% of all hourly paid workers.

Minimum wage across the US:California fast food workers will earn at least $20 per hour

View your state:Minimum wage is going up in 23 states as $15 an hour gains steam.