Figure A
What if the federal minimum wage had risen like CEO salaries since the late 1960s?
| Federal minimum wage | |
|---|---|
| 1968 federal minimum wage (in 2024 $’s) | $11.82 |
| 2024 federal minimum wage | $7.25 |
| What the 2024 federal minimum wage would be if it had grown at the same rate as CEO pay since 1968 | $203.10 |

Note: For the last bar in the chart, we applied the growth rate of CEO pay between 1968 and 2024—1618%—to the 1968 federal minimum wage. Details on CEO pay growth can be found here: https://www.epi.org/publication/ceo-pay/.
Source: Federal minimum wage data from data.epi.org and CEO pay landing page (Table 1B).
Previous chart: « Chicago Fed’s flow-consistent unemployment rate tracks the official rate: Monthly unemployment rates
Next chart: What if typical worker pay had risen like CEO salaries since the late 1960s? »