(a) Except as otherwise provided for in law, an employer shall pay to each employee a minimum wage, as established herein, for hours worked in a pay period, whether the work is measured by time, piece, commission or otherwise. An employer may not apply tips or gratuities bestowed upon employees as a credit toward payment of the minimum hourly wage required by this section. Tip credit as defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 as amended does not apply to the minimum wage established by this section:
- (1) beginning July 1, 2025, the minimum wage shall be $13.00 per hour;
- (2) effective July 1, 2026, the minimum wage shall be $14.00 per hour;
- (3) effective July 1, 2027, the minimum wage shall be $15.00 per hour; and
- (4) thereafter the minimum wage shall be adjusted annually for inflation; the adjustment shall be calculated each September 30, for the proceeding January-December calendar year by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, using 100 percent of the rate of inflation based on the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers for the Anchorage metropolitan area, compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor; the department shall round the adjusted minimum hourly wage up to the nearest ten cents; the adjusted minimum hourly wage shall apply to work performed beginning on January 1 through December 31 of the year for which it is effective.