A federal law was passed in 2007 requiring local wages to increase by 50 cents each year, until the minimum wage reaches $7.75.
American Samoa Gov. Togilola Tulafono has asked the Federal General Accountability Team to include villages in their consultations.
American Samoa journalist Monica Miller has told Radio Australia’s Pacific Beat that under the previous local wages system, employers and employees were consulted every two years.
Before American Samoa came under the federal wage law, a committee appointed by the secretary of labor would hold hearings every two years. Employees and employers would testify.
The U.S. Department of Labor would also do a survey, Miller said.
“And then they decide what kind of recommendation they will give to the secretary of labor and whether wages would be increased.”
