1938
Roosevelt said when he enacted the federal minimum wage in 1938, a living wage is what it was supposed to be; “It seems to me to be equally plain that no business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country,” he said.
What is the history of minimum wage in the United States?
The federal minimum wage was introduced in 1938 at the rate of $0.25 per hour (equivalent to $4.6 in 2020). By 1950 the minimum wage had risen to $0.75 per hour. The purchasing power of the federal minimum wage has fluctuated; it was highest in 1968, when it was $1.60 per hour (equivalent to $11.91 in 2020).
Where in the US can you live on minimum wage?
However, two cities still (theoretically) allow minimum wage earners to only work one job and live there affordably: Bakersfield, California and Tucson, Arizona.
What was the first minimum wage in the United States?
The first minimum wage law was enacted in 1894 in New Zealand. With the passage of The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA), the U.S. minimum wage was initially set at $0.25 per hour for covered workers. Since then, it has been raised 22 separate times–most recently, in July 2009, to $7.25 an hour.
How often has the federal minimum wage been changed?
In the years since the FLSA was introduced, the federal minimum wage was revised by Congress every few years to account for inflation and the ever rising cost of living (although, in the years after the FLSA was introduced, Congress has actually reduced the Minimum Wage several times).
What was the federal minimum wage in 1979?
Jan 1, 1978. $2.65 for all covered, nonexempt workers. $2.65 for all covered, nonexempt workers. $2.65 for all covered, nonexempt workers. Jan 1, 1979. $2.90 for all covered, nonexempt workers. $2.90 for all covered, nonexempt workers. $2.90 for all covered, nonexempt workers. Jan 1, 1980. $3.10 for all covered, nonexempt workers
Are there any States where the minimum wage is lower?
Two states (Wyoming and Georgia) have state minimum wage rates that are lower than the federal rate, so the federal minimum wage applies. Fourteen states have laws that set the minimum wage at the federal rate.
