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Bank of America raises its U.S. minimum wage to $24 an hour
Bank of America is closing in on its objective of paying its U.S. workers a minimum of $25 an hour by 2025, increasing its base wage to within a buck of that goal starting in October.
The step represents an increase from a $23 hourly rate set last September, the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank said Tuesday. The $1 hourly boost, which will apply to all full- and part-time hourly jobs in the U.S., brings a full-time annualized salary to roughly $50,000.
BofA declined to say how many workers would get the pay hike, telling CBS MoneyWatch that it would be in the “thousands.”
The poverty threshold for a family of four in 2023 was $30,900, according to data released Tuesday by the Census Bureau.
Bank of America Corp.
BofA, the nation’s second-largest bank, embarked on increasing its hourly base seven years ago, lifting compensation for its lowest-paid workers to $15. The company’s minimum wage has more than doubled since 2010, when it stood at $11.30 per hour.
The company’s annual hikes have the bank paying its lowest-paid workers more than three times the federal minimum wage, which has not budged from $7.25 an hour for the last 15 years.
Labor advocates launched the “Fight for $15” campaign in 2012 to put pressure on employers to raise their pay. More than 30 U.S. states now require employers to offer minimum wage in excess of the federal base, Department of Labor data shows.
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A food company known for popular grocery store condiments has recalled a package of tortilla strips that may be contaminated with wheat, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday. The product is meant to be gluten-free.
Sugar Foods, a manufacturing and distribution corporation focused mainly on various toppings, artificial sweeteners and snacks, issued the recall for the “Santa Fe Style” version of tortilla strips sold by the brand Fresh Gourmet.
“People who have a wheat allergy or severe sensitivity to wheat run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume the product,” said Sugar Foods in an announcement posted by the FDA.
Packages of these tortilla strips with an expiration date as late as June 20, 2025, could contain undeclared wheat, meaning the allergen is not listed as an ingredient on the label. The Fresh Gourmet product is marketed as gluten-free.
Sugar Foods said a customer informed the company on Nov. 19 that packages of the tortilla strips actually contained crispy onions, another Fresh Gourmet product normally sold in a similar container. The brand’s crispy onion product does contain wheat, and that allergen is noted on the label.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
No illnesses tied to the packaging mistake have been reported, according to the announcement from Sugar Foods. However, the company is still recalling the tortilla strips as a precaution. The contamination issue may have affected products distributed between Sept. 30 and Nov. 11 in 22 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Washington.
Sugar Foods has advised anyone with questions about the recall to contact the company’s consumer care department by email or phone.
CBS News reached out to Sugar Foods for more information but did not receive an immediate reply.
This is the latest in a series of food product recalls affected because of contamination issues, although the others involved harmful bacteria. Some recent, high-profile incidents include an E. coli outbreak from organic carrots that killed at least one person in California, and a listeria outbreak that left an infant dead in California and nine people hospitalized across four different states, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The E. coli outbreak is linked to multiple different food brands while the listeria outbreak stemmed from a line of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products sold by Yu-Shang Foods.
