PIERRE - The state's minimum wage will increase to $6.55 an hour beginning Thursday.

The Legislature in 2007 approved a three-step increase in the minimum wage.

It rose to $5.85 in July 2007. This year's boost to $6.55 will be followed by an increase to $7.25 in 2009.

The steps mirror increases in the federal minimum wage enacted under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.