Amazon raising minimum wage to $15 for all U.S. employees

SEATTLE, Was. (FOX 35 WOFL) - Online retailer Amazon has announced on Tuesday that they are raising their minimum wage to $15 for all U.S. employees, including Full-Time, Part-Time, Temporary, and Seasonal.

This increase in wage will be effective starting November 1st. This will benefit more than 250,000 Amazon employees, as well as over 100,000 seasonal employees who will be hired at Amazon sites across the country this holiday.

"We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead," said Jeff Bezos, Amazon Founder and CEO. "We're excited about this change and encourage our competitors and other large employers to join us."

Amazon says that they will also begin advocating for an increase in the federal minimum wage.

"We will be working to gain Congressional support for an increase in the federal minimum wage. The current rate of $7.25 was set nearly a decade ago," said Jay Carney, Senior Vice President of Amazon Global Corporate Affairs. "We intend to advocate for a minimum wage increase that will have a profound impact on the lives of tens of millions of people and families across this country."

The online retailer also says that employees will still receive Amazon's industry-leading benefits, including:

Visit HERE to find out more about the new Amazon $15 wage.