Raising the minimum wage would lift millions of African Americans and Hispanics out of poverty: Black and Hispanic nonelderly poverty rates in 2017, under actual, 1968-level, and a more ambitious minimum wage
| Black and Hispanic poverty | |
|---|---|
| Actual | 19.517836% |
| Under 1968-level minimum wage | 16.823694% |
| Under $12.67 minimum wage* | 11.325647% |
* $12.67 in 2017 is equivalent to $15 in 2024 after accounting for projected inflation
Source: Adapted and updated from Ben Zipperer, The Erosion of the Federal Minimum Wage Has Increased Poverty, Especially for Black and Hispanic Families, Economic Policy Institute, June 2018.
Source: Adapted and updated from Ben Zipperer, The Erosion of the Federal Minimum Wage Has Increased Poverty, Especially for Black and Hispanic Families, Economic Policy Institute, June 2018. Author’s calculations from the 2018 Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement, historical federal minimum wage values, and the poverty rate elasticity reported for black and Latino individuals in Arindrajit Dube, “Minimum Wages and the Distribution of Family Incomes,” American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, forthcoming. A $12.67 minimum wage in 2017 is, after adjusted for projected inflation, equivalent to the value of a $15 minimum wage in 2024. Projected inflation from Congressional Budget Office, An Update to the Economic Outlook: 2018 to 2028, “10-Year Economic Projections” (Excel file supplement), August 2018.