National rate will rise 70 cents Thursday to $6.55 per hour in the second phase of three-stage increase.
government is set to boost the nation's minimum wage Thursday in the second of three increases mandated by Congress.
, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET.

By STEVE WELKER and AP MORGANTON - On Jan. 1, 2007, North Carolina's minimum wage rose for the first time in nine years, leaping from $5.15 per hour to $6.15.
At the same time, North Carolina coupled its minimum wage to the federal standard so, today, the minimum wage jumps again.
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That's when the federal minimum wage goes up 70 cents an hour. The raise - from $5.85 to $6.55 per hour -- is the second of three annual increases required by a 2007 law.
The bad news may be that higher gas and food prices will likely swallow up that extra cash. Energy costs have soared nearly 25 percent. The price of food is up more than 5 percent.
the election for Attorney General in November?

In just a few hours, millions of hourly US workers will get a pay raise. Starting Thursday, the federal minimum wage goes up to $6-55 per hour.