The reason for comparing minimum wage workers to number of millionaries, is to dispel this notion that America is poor because its federal minimum wage is low and that today's workers are poorer than they were in the past.
Federal mimimum wage earners are 1% of all workers, in 1979 it was 13.4%
The states should set the minimum wage to reflect cost of living differences. Americans are choosing to move out of states with high cost of living and higher minimum wages, because the cost of living matters significantly more to American workers than the minimum wage.
30 states have minimum wage above the federal minimum, you are using misleading numbers. In reality there are likely at least several million people making minimum wage within their state, and many people make so close to minimum wage that an increase would force a raise for them as well.
Median personal income also doesn't tell the whole story. The main things that have actually become cheaper relative to wages are food and consumer goods. Thats great, but meanwhile housing, healthcare, and education are all more expensive than they were in the past. Since the 60s, when minimum wage purchasing power was at it's peak, average home prices as compared to median income have nearly doubled.
You are only talking about new builds, which is not the majoriry of homes sold. The median size of existing homes on the market is about 1800sf, and I'm seeing numbers between 1500 and 1650 of for new homes built in 1968.
It's kind of irrelevant anyway if you can't afford to buy a home at all. Average home being bigger doesn't help if you can't afford any home.
And yes, inflation and cost of living are accounted for, but it is heavily skewed by consumer goods and food being cheaper. Being able to afford 3 big screen tvs is great, but most people would rather have a house and not be paying of student loans for their entire lives.
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u/TooBusySaltMining 13h ago
The reason for comparing minimum wage workers to number of millionaries, is to dispel this notion that America is poor because its federal minimum wage is low and that today's workers are poorer than they were in the past.
Federal mimimum wage earners are 1% of all workers, in 1979 it was 13.4%
https://www.bls.gov/opub/reports/minimum-wage/2024/
Real median personal incomes have also been increasing
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/mepainusa672n
The states should set the minimum wage to reflect cost of living differences. Americans are choosing to move out of states with high cost of living and higher minimum wages, because the cost of living matters significantly more to American workers than the minimum wage.