WEST virginia legislature

2022 regular session

Introduced

Senate Joint Resolution 13

By Senator Lindsay

[Introduced February 21, 2022; referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance]

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia, amending article VI thereof by adding a new section designated section 57, relating to establishing a state minimum wage; numbering and designating such proposed amendment; and providing a summarized statement of the purpose of such proposed amendment.

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia, two thirds of the members elected to each house agreeing thereto:

That the question of ratification or rejection of an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia be submitted to the voters of the state at the next general election to be held in the year 2022, which proposed amendment is that article VI thereof be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section 57, to read as follows:

ARTICLE VI. THE LEGISLATURE.

§57. State Minimum Wage Amendment.

Except as otherwise provided in this section, every employer shall pay their employees a wage rate of not less than $10.25 per hour beginning January 1, 2023.  On each September 30, beginning in 2023, this state minimum wage rate shall be increased effective the following January 1 by the rate of inflation for the 12-month period prior to that September according to the consumer price index or its successor index for all urban wage earners and clerical workers for all items as calculated by the federal government rounded to the nearest five cents.

(a) Exceptions.  Employees under the age of 16 and employees of businesses with annual gross receipts of $300,000 or less for the preceding year shall be paid a wage rate of not less than that established under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act or its successor law.

(1) Gross revenue adjustment.  This gross revenue figure shall be increased each year beginning January 1, 2024, by the change in the consumer price index or its successor index in the same manner as the required annual adjustment in the minimum wage rate set forth above rounded to the nearest $1,000.

(2) Tipped employees.  An employer may pay an employee less than, but not less than half, the minimum wage rate required by this section if the employer is able to demonstrate that the employee receives tips that combined with the wages paid by the employer are equal to or greater than the minimum wage rate for all hours worked.

(3) Family members and family-owned business.  The provisions of this section may not apply to employees of a solely family owned and operated business who are family members of an owner.

(4) Exceptional individuals.  The state may issue licenses to employers authorizing payment of a wage rate below that required by this section to individuals with mental or physical disabilities that my otherwise adversely affect their opportunity for employment.

(b) Definitions. “Employer,” “employee,” “employ,” “person,” and “independent contractor”  shall have the same meanings as under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act or its successor law, except that “employer” shall also include the state and every political subdivision and “employee” may not include an individual employed in or about the property of the employer or individual’s residence on a causal basis.

(c)  This section shall be liberally construed in favor of its purposes. Laws may be passed to implement its provisions and create additional remedies, increase the minimum wage rate, and extend the coverage of the section, but in no manner restricting any provision of the section.

Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of article eleven, chapter three of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, such amendment is hereby numbered “Amendment No. 1” and designated as the “State Minimum Wage” and the purpose of the proposed amendment is summarized as follows:  “To amend the State Constitution to implement a state minimum wage in a reasonable and fair way to ensure citizens of West Virginia receive a fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work.“

NOTE: The purpose of this resolution is to implement a state minimum wage in a reasonable and fair way to ensure citizens of West Virginia receive a fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.