Real and nominal value of the federal minimum wage, projected value under the Raise the Wage Act, and total economy productivity, 1938–2014 and 2015–2020 (projected)
| Real federal minimum wage (2014$) | Projected under RTWA* | Productivity | Projected Net Productivity | Nominal minimum wage | Projected nominal minimum wage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | $3.67 | $ 0.25 | ||||
| 1939 | $4.46 | $ 0.30 | ||||
| 1940 | $4.43 | $ 0.30 | ||||
| 1941 | $4.22 | $ 0.30 | ||||
| 1942 | $3.81 | $ 0.30 | ||||
| 1943 | $3.59 | $ 0.30 | ||||
| 1944 | $3.53 | $ 0.30 | ||||
| 1945 | $4.60 | $ 0.40 | ||||
| 1946 | $4.24 | $ 0.40 | ||||
| 1947 | $3.71 | $ 0.40 | ||||
| 1948 | $3.43 | $5.39 | $ 0.40 | |||
| 1949 | $3.48 | $5.47 | $ 0.40 | |||
| 1950 | $6.44 | $5.89 | $ 0.75 | |||
| 1951 | $5.97 | $6.05 | $ 0.75 | |||
| 1952 | $5.85 | $6.23 | $ 0.75 | |||
| 1953 | $5.81 | $6.44 | $ 0.75 | |||
| 1954 | $5.77 | $6.55 | $ 0.75 | |||
| 1955 | $5.79 | $6.81 | $ 0.75 | |||
| 1956 | $7.60 | $6.82 | $ 1.00 | |||
| 1957 | $7.36 | $7.01 | $ 1.00 | |||
| 1958 | $7.16 | $7.15 | $ 1.00 | |||
| 1959 | $7.11 | $7.41 | $ 1.00 | |||
| 1960 | $6.99 | $7.54 | $ 1.00 | |||
| 1961 | $7.96 | $7.77 | $ 1.15 | |||
| 1962 | $7.88 | $8.07 | $ 1.15 | |||
| 1963 | $8.45 | $8.35 | $ 1.25 | |||
| 1964 | $8.34 | $8.62 | $ 1.25 | |||
| 1965 | $8.21 | $8.88 | $ 1.25 | |||
| 1966 | $7.98 | $9.16 | $ 1.25 | |||
| 1967 | $8.67 | $9.27 | $ 1.40 | |||
| 1968 | $9.54 | $9.54 | $ 1.60 | |||
| 1969 | $9.13 | $9.58 | $ 1.60 | |||
| 1970 | $8.71 | $9.71 | $ 1.60 | |||
| 1971 | $8.35 | $10.08 | $ 1.60 | |||
| 1972 | $8.10 | $10.34 | $ 1.60 | |||
| 1973 | $7.62 | $10.60 | $ 1.60 | |||
| 1974 | $8.66 | $10.43 | $ 2.00 | |||
| 1975 | $8.40 | $10.66 | $ 2.10 | |||
| 1976 | $8.70 | $10.96 | $ 2.30 | |||
| 1977 | $8.18 | $11.08 | $ 2.30 | |||
| 1978 | $8.83 | $11.19 | $ 2.65 | |||
| 1979 | $8.81 | $11.21 | $ 2.90 | |||
| 1980 | $8.48 | $11.12 | $ 3.10 | |||
| 1981 | $8.37 | $11.36 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1982 | $7.89 | $11.20 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1983 | $7.57 | $11.53 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1984 | $7.27 | $11.83 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1985 | $7.03 | $12.03 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1986 | $6.90 | $12.28 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1987 | $6.68 | $12.34 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1988 | $6.44 | $12.48 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1989 | $6.18 | $12.58 | $ 3.35 | |||
| 1990 | $6.67 | $12.76 | $ 3.80 | |||
| 1991 | $7.20 | $12.87 | $ 4.25 | |||
| 1992 | $7.03 | $13.33 | $ 4.25 | |||
| 1993 | $6.86 | $13.38 | $ 4.25 | |||
| 1994 | $6.71 | $13.50 | $ 4.25 | |||
| 1995 | $6.56 | $13.51 | $ 4.25 | |||
| 1996 | $7.14 | $13.84 | $ 4.75 | |||
| 1997 | $7.57 | $14.03 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 1998 | $7.47 | $14.31 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 1999 | $7.32 | $14.65 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2000 | $7.08 | $15.00 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2001 | $6.89 | $15.23 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2002 | $6.78 | $15.66 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2003 | $6.63 | $16.17 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2004 | $6.46 | $16.60 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2005 | $6.25 | $16.89 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2006 | $6.05 | $17.00 | $ 5.15 | |||
| 2007 | $6.68 | $17.12 | $ 5.85 | |||
| 2008 | $7.20 | $17.15 | $ 6.55 | |||
| 2009 | $8.00 | $17.50 | $ 7.25 | |||
| 2010 | $7.87 | $18.01 | $ 7.25 | |||
| 2011 | $7.63 | $18.03 | $ 7.25 | |||
| 2012 | $7.48 | $18.15 | $ 7.25 | |||
| 2013 | $7.37 | $18.33 | $ 7.25 | |||
| 2014 | $7.25 | $18.42 | $18.42 | $ 7.25 | $ 7.25 | |
| 2015 | $7.17 | $7.17 | $18.79 | $ 7.25 | ||
| 2016 | $7.75 | $19.16 | $ 8.00 | |||
| 2017 | $8.52 | $19.55 | $ 9.00 | |||
| 2018 | $9.25 | $19.94 | $ 10.00 | |||
| 2019 | $9.94 | $20.34 | $ 11.00 | |||
| 2020 | $10.58 | $20.74 | $12 |
Note: The productivity series is total economy productivity net depreciation, indexed to the 1968 real value of the minimum wage. Minimum-wage values are in 2014 dollars deflated by the CPI-U-RS. Projections for productivity growth and the real value of the minimum wage under the Raise the Wage Act use CBO (2015).
Source: EPI analysis of Raise the Wage Act, Fair Labor Standards Act and amendments, Current Population Survey Outgoing Rotation Group microdata, unpublished Total Economy Productivity data from Bureau of Labor Statistics Labor Productivity and Costs program, and CBO (2015)
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