New Minimum Wage: $6.55

The national minimum wage went up 70 cents on Thursday as the second of three planned increases mandated by Congress took effect.

The national minimum wage will increase to $6.55 per hour as part of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007.

Before last year's legislation, the national minimum wage had been left unchanged at $5.15 an hour since 1997.

The act calls for a third and final increase, scheduled to take place on July 24, 2009, that will raise the minimum wage to $7.25 per hour...

With labor costs accounting for 70%-80% of business costs, raising the minimum wage will force producers to pass on the added expense to consumers, Dunkelberg said.

What's more, lifting the minimum wage deters employers from hiring young and unskilled workers, since they become more expensive, according to the NFIB.

"So, the increased minimum wage makes it more difficult to hire those who are most adversely affected by the economic slowdown," Dunkelberg said.

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