Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, 54(4):538-546. October 2015.
- Abstract
- I provide here a historical overview of the impact of minimum wage legislation, enacted over 75 years ago in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938 and as amended subsequently on numerous occasions.
Given elected officials’ caution today about raising the minimum wage in bad economic times, the timing of the passage of the FLSA is remarkable. After a long and heated political debate, Congress passed the FLSA in 1938, establishing a nationwide minimum wage of $0.25 per hour, with increases to $0.30 in 1939 and to $0.40 in 1945. Importantly, the federal minimum wage established a floor, not a ceiling. States and localities could enact higher minimum wages—although none did until the 1980s.
Reich, Michael. “The Effects of Minimum Wages on the Economy and on Inequality.” In conference volume, Wage Policies for a Better Future: Minimum Wage Regimes and Income-Led Growth in Comparative
Monthly Labor Review, US Bureau of Labor Statistics. September 2014.
- Abstract
- A study using Current Population Survey data shows that, from 1996 to 2012, elementary, middle, and high school teachers earned less than other college graduates, but the gap was smaller for public school teachers and smaller still if they had union representation; moreover, the mitigating effects are stronger for female than male teachers, so the within-gender pay gaps are much larger for male teachers.