Employers in most states will see an increase this week to the minimum wage they are required to pay employees.

The federal minimum wage will increase from $6.55 per hour to $7.25 per hour Friday, July 24. In addition to employers in states with no minimum wage law, employers in states with minimum wages below $7.25 per hour and those in states that have approved minimum wages that rise in lock-step with the federal rate will be required to pay a higher minimum wage beginning Friday.

Employers in the following 30 states will see the minimum wage they are required to pay increase to $7.25 per hour on Friday. Those states are:

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arkansas
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Maryland
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Oklahoma
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

In the District of Columbia, the minimum wage minimum wage will increase to $8.25 per hour beginning July 24, 2009.

In Nevada, the state minimum wage rate varies for employers, depending on whether the employer offers its employees health benefits, and is indexed to inflation. The increase in the federal rate on July 24 will require Nevada employers that provide health insurance to pay their employees $7.25 per hour. Employers that don't offer qualified health insurance must pay $7.55 per hour.

The following 19 states already have minimum wages at or above $7.25 per hour, so they won't be affected by the new federal minimum wage:

• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Hawaii
• Illinois
• Iowa
• Kentucky
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• New Hampshire
• New Mexico
• Ohio
• Oregon
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Washington
• West Virginia