History of the minimum wage 2 + 2 + History of the minimum wage Katrina Meldahl

first instituted over 75 years ago during the Great Depression + 2 first instituted over 75 years ago during the Great Depression

Title 2 + WHAT IS IT? A Minimum Wage is the lowest wage that employers may legally pay to workers. 

The who’s 1938 - Franklin D. Roosevelt was the president at the time the first Minimum Wage was introduced Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) - employers were legally required to pay workers overtime, the country's first minimum wage was $0.25 per hour FDR was the president who officially enacted the first minimum wage in 1938 at 25 cents an hour He created the Fair Labor Standards Act where employers were legally required to pay workers overtime and minimum wage.

How does the minimum wage work? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edtqrOmL_QQ

Where is the min. wage regulated? Federal minimum wage law is enforced by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington D.C.

2 + Why? The FLSA was enacted by FDR to help stabilize the post-depression economy and protect the workers in the labor force The minimum wage was to give the Americans a minimum standard of living to protect the health and well- being of employees FDR was trying to get the economy going again after the Great Depression, so he proposed several strategies, which eventually resulted in the installment of a minimum wage, despite the Supreme Court's stance on the policy. One of his proposals called for companies to shorten shifts and raise wages; this would create more jobs and also ensure that the employee’s would still get paid the same (or more) despite a shortened shift.

Title THEN NOW The act applied to industries whose combined employment represented about 20% of the labor force Unlike some budget and monetary laws, the federal minimum wage was not automatically set to adjust for inflation $0.25 / hour ($4.00 in today’s money) The wage now covers approximately 130 million workers or 84% of the labor force The wage has been changed by the President’s since 1938, around 22 times $7.25 / hour

Adv. & Dis. ADVANTAGES:  It provides a minimum income to be able to pay bills/ basic needs; prevents companies from taking advantage of the labor market, and makes sure companies share their wealth who assist in generating it DISADVANTAGES: It leads to job outsourcing; it is harmful to non- profit organizations, and foreign companies have an advantage over domestic companies Job Outsourcing ("contracting out") moves tasks, operations, or jobs to an external workforce, by contracting with a third party for a significant period of time. Businesses typically do this to reduce costs or improve efficiency.

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Minimum wages over time Effective Date 1938 Act  1961 Amendments Oct 24, 1938 $0.25  -- Oct 24, 1939 $0.30 Oct 24, 1945 $0.40 Jan 25, 1950 $0.75 Mar 1, 1956 $1.00 Sep 3, 1961 $1.15 Sep 3, 1963 $1.25 Sep 3, 1964 Sep 3, 1965 Feb 1, 1967 $1.40 Feb 1, 1968 $1.60 Feb 1, 1969 Feb 1, 1970 Feb 1, 1971 Effective Date 1938 Act  1961 Amendments May 1, 1974 $2.00 Jan. 1, 1975 $2.10 Jan 1, 1976 $2.30 Jan 1, 1977  -- Jan 1, 1978 $2.65 for all covered, nonexempt workers (cont.) Jan 1, 1979 $2.90 Jan 1, 1980 $3.10 Jan 1, 1981 $3.35 Apr 1, 1990 $3.80 Apr 1, 1991 $4.25 Oct 1, 1996 $4.75 Sep 1, 1997 $5.15 Jul 24, 2007 $5.85 Jul 24, 2008 $6.55 Jul 24, 2009 $7.25 2 +

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https://poverty.ucdavis.edu/faq/what-history-minimum-wage Sources https://poverty.ucdavis.edu/faq/what-history-minimum-wage https://www.businessinsider.com/minimum-wage-origin-2015-7 https://www.hrdirect.com/federal-minimum-wage-history-infographic https://wealthyaccountant.com/2018/08/06/the-minimum-wage-and-inflation/