Georgia OCGA §34-4-3.1 expressly preempts cities including Atlanta from setting a minimum wage above the state rate, and the state minimum aligns with the federal floor of $7.25 per hour.
Georgia bars local governments from setting their own minimum wages above the statewide rate. OCGA §34-4-3 sets Georgia's minimum wage at $5.15 per hour, but federal Fair Labor Standards Act coverage means most Georgia workers actually receive the federal $7.25 floor. OCGA §34-4-3.1, enacted to head off local wage activism, prohibits any county or city from establishing a minimum wage higher than the state's. As a result, Atlanta cannot enact a $15 or $20 citywide minimum wage like Seattle or Los Angeles. Atlanta's only wage lever is its Living Wage Ordinance (13-O-1325) covering its own contractors. State legislators have repeatedly rejected proposals to raise the state minimum.
Any city ordinance attempting to set a higher minimum wage would be void on its face under OCGA §34-4-3.1. Workers harmed by underpayment must rely on federal FLSA enforcement through the U.S. Department of Labor.
Atlanta, GA
Atlanta Ordinance 13-O-1325 requires city contractors and certain subcontractors to pay a living wage above federal minimum, but the rule applies only to fir...
Atlanta, GA
Georgia OCGA §50-36-1 requires public contractors to use E-Verify and OCGA §36-60-6 mandates private employers with more than 10 workers verify new hires thr...
See how Atlanta's minimum wage preemption rules stack up against other locations.
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