Starbucks is set to raise its wages Monday, bringing 30 percent of its employees or “partners” above $15 an hour.
The company CEO Kevin Johnson said this week the move put the company on a path to provide all U.S. employees with a $15 minimum wage within three years.
“With these investments, more than 30 percent of our U.S. retail partners are currently at or above $15/hour and we continue on our path to ensure all U.S. partners will be making at or above $15/hour within the coming two to three years,” he wrote in a Wednesday letter to Congress.
“As we always do, we will continue to explore what more we can do to provide compensation and benefits in support of our partners,” he added.
The increase follows steps by several major companies to increase their wages.
Target raised its minimum wage to $15 an hour in June, and Walmart said earlier this year it would bump its bottom hourly wage to $12.
The federal minimum wage, on the other hand, has not increased from $7.25 since 2009.
Last year, the House approved a bill raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour over several years, but the Senate did not take it up.
The minimum wage has been increasing in cities and states. Most recently, Florida voters approved a minimum wage increase to $15 an hour.
CORRECTION: The Starbucks wage increases will put 30 percent of its employees in the U.S. at a wage of $15 per hour or higher. An earlier version included incorrect information.