SEMO Student Workers Are To Recieve Minimum Wage Boost Under New Missouri Law

12 AUG 2025 - SEMO Student Workers are to recieve minimum wage boost under new Missouri law. Our Editor in Chief, Lily Niebrugge interviewed two SEMO Student workers about how the increase in wages would effect them. 

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome back to Arrow on the air, I'm your host,
Ella Tinsley. Simo's student workers will receive a minimum wage
boost under new Missouri law. Our editor in chief Lily
Knieberghee interviewed to Simo students about how the increase in
wages for student workers would affect them. The Southeast Missouri
State University student wage will rise from the current ten

(00:21):
dollars and fifty cents per hour to the state's minimum
wage of thirteen dollars and seventy five cents per hour
starting on August twenty eighth. Under the ten dollars and
fifty cents per hour pay minimum, students working twenty hours
a week would make around four hundred and twenty dollars
every two week pay period before tax. However, once the
minimum wage starts, students who work twenty hours a week

(00:42):
will receive around five hundred and fifty dollars before tax.
Hawk leader in the Office of Admissions and Political Science
in Spanish double major Camilla Ricarde, said the extra money
would help her afford more and pay back her parents.

Speaker 2 (00:55):
I would be able to see my groceries.

Speaker 3 (00:57):
I feel like, I mean, I'm very fortunate that, like
my parents like help me pay for like the school
in my apartment, but everything else is a lot harder
and obviously I would like to hate my parents at back.

Speaker 1 (01:08):
Well, thankful for this increase, Some students believe that the
thirteen dollars and seventy five cents rate is still not
enough to live on. Student Painter with facility management and
senior Exercise Science and Management major Brandon Mullens said minimum
wage is still not enough for student to make a
livable wage.

Speaker 2 (01:25):
As far as paying off bills. It would make it
a little bit easier, but honestly, I still need to
see a pay wage of around closer to sixteen seventy
dollars to actually make a decent living because right now
I'm still relying on my fiance for a lot of things,
and that's not really sharre.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
Swer Camilla Ricarde agreed with that sentiment.

Speaker 3 (01:44):
I get paid thirty thirty hours, so I get pretty
I get better than other student workers. But even like
my student workers who are kind of.

Speaker 2 (01:51):
The commun I guess we should say or just like
a different position, I am like they do more and
I do more. It should not broad enough.

Speaker 1 (02:05):
It is unclear if the school being required to pay students.
More will result in fewer student job opportunities on campus,
especially after the increase to fifteen dollars per hour as
scheduled for January first. It will be up to individual
managers to look at expenditters in their budgets to see
if there will be fewer hours, layoffs, or reduced hirings
following the pay increase. This is a developing story, so

(02:28):
remember to check out southeastarow dot com for updates. Thank
you for joining me for Arrow on the Air. Be
sure to join us next time for stories that impact
our community. For Arrow on the Air, I'm Ella Tinsley.