Congress Has Never Let the Federal Minimum Wage Erode for This Long

Posted at https://www.epi.org/publication/congress-has-never-let-the-federal-minimum-wage-erode-for-this-long/

David Cooper, senior economic analyst, observed in EPI’s latest economic snapshot that the U.S. is currently experiencing the longest period in history without an increase to the federal minimum wage. Sunday, June 16, marks the day we surpassed the previous record—it has been nearly 10 years since Congress raised the minimum wage to $7.25 per hour, in July 2009. Inflation has eroded its buying power significantly—that same $7.25 minimum wage is worth $3,000 less in annual wages today than it was 10 years ago. Cooper suggests adopting automatic annual minimum wage adjustment and passing the Raise the Wage Act of 2019 to increase the minimum wage to $15 by 2024.

Read the economic snapshot at https://www.epi.org/publication/congress-has-never-let-the-federal-minimum-wage-erode-for-this-long/.

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