Weirdest fucking thing. I pieced this whole argument out from a conversation with a co-worker, a quick blip on the radio on the drive home from work, and my own thoughts. Then I look at This Piece on The Week this morning and it's basically my argument said better. He even brings up Wal-Mart's profits and Target's wage hike and all. If I hadn't written what I'd written the day before, I swear I committed plagiarism. Actually, I feel like I did, even though I think I didn't because it took me like a whole hour to write that.
I'm starting to think maybe it has to do with unemployment dropping and there being a shortage of good workers now. If the demand is high and supply is low, pay more. That, or it could be like the guy said in the article I linked, where companies are trying to get ahead of the change in pay rates in many states. It's definitely good news for you and your peers either way.