Gov. Chafee signs minimum wage hike

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - Rhode Island's minimum wage will soon rise for the first time in five years.

Governor Lincoln Chafee has signed a bill passed by the General Assembly that increases the minimum wage by 35 cents an hour.

Beginning January 1, 2013, Rhode Island employers will be required to pay workers at least $7.75 an hour.

Opponents say the wage increase will cost Rhode Island jobs.  According to a report by the Employment Policies Institute , research found that each ten-percent increase in a state's minimum wage has caused a three-percent drop in teen employment. 

The group says the unemployment rate for Rhode Island teens ages 16 to 19 is currently 29.8%, the third worst in the country.

Rhode Island still lags behind neighboring Massachusetts, where the minimum wage is $8.00 an hour, and Connecticut, which pays its workers a minimum of $8.25 an hour.