South Dakota’s minimum wage is going up on Jan. 1, 2025.
The 30-cent increase puts the state at $11.50 per hour for minimum wage, non-tipped employees. The annual increase is calculated via cost-of-living indices.
The adjustment maintains South Dakota’s position in the middle of the pack for nationwide state minimum wages.
The federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. The state of Iowa also has a minimum wage of $7.25, which has been in place for nearly 20 years, and the amount is $12 in Nebraska.
*Also in Nebraska, a public school in Siouxland dismissed students early on Tuesday and didn’t have classes on Wednesday, as the result of a recent cyber attack.
Winnebago Public Schools announced in a social media post that there was a recent cyber attack on the school’s system.
Superintendent Kamau Turner wrote, “We are currently working through the breach, and trying to get our system back to full operation. Please be patient with us as we may have some services (phone, internet, etc.) shut down periodically. We have a great team of people navigating WPS through the event.”
Parent-teacher conferences at Winnebago Public Schools were planned to be held Thursday.
*Additionally, a new report has ranked Iowa 13th in the nation when it comes to women and children’s health.
The report is part of America’s Health Rankings by the United Healthcare Foundation, after more than 100 indicators of women’s and children’s health were analyzed.
The report shows Iowa women have one of the lowest rates of unemployment and highest rates of high school graduation
Lisa Saul is the chief medical officer of women's health for United Healthcare. Saul said Iowa’s alcohol use stood out.
“It was high among adolescents, but we also see that Iowa is in the lower half when we compare it to the rest of the country in terms of excessive drinking...among women ages 18 to 44,” Saul said.
The report also found Iowa women rank low in terms of exercise habits and fruit and vegetable consumption.
*A combined $1.25 million dollars in grants were given to 26 Siouxland organizations on Thursday, when annual awards from the Missouri River Historical Development organization were announced.
The MRHD grants ranged from $25,000 to $150,000. That largest amount went to the Woodbury County 911 system for new equipment.
Some of the grants went to places hampered by June severe flooding, such as $115,000 going to the Siouxland Historical Railroad Association, after its museum was flooded by the Big Sioux River.
Grants of $100,000 also went to the June E. Nylen cancer Center and towards the cost of a fire truck in Quimby, Iowa.
MRHD holds the license for casino gambling in Woodbury County, and its officials provide such grants as part of their mission.
