Demographic characteristics of white workers affected by increasing the federal minimum wage by $15 by 2024
| Group | Total estimated workforce (thousands) | Directly affected (thousands) | Share directly affected | Indirectly affected (thousands) | Share indirectly affected | Total affected (thousands) | Share of group who are affected | Group’s share of total affected |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All white workers | 89,375 | 14,187 | 15.9% | 6,514 | 7.3% | 20,701 | 23.2% | 100.0% |
| Gender | ||||||||
| Women | 43,437 | 8,686 | 20.0% | 3,925 | 9.0% | 12,611 | 29.0% | 60.9% |
| Men | 45,938 | 5,501 | 12.0% | 2,589 | 5.6% | 8,090 | 17.6% | 39.1% |
| Age | ||||||||
| Age 19 or younger | 3,009 | 2,094 | 69.6% | 207 | 6.9% | 2,301 | 76.5% | 11.1% |
| Age 20 or older | 86,366 | 12,092 | 14.0% | 6,308 | 7.3% | 18,400 | 21.3% | 88.9% |
| Ages 16–24 | 11,152 | 6,200 | 55.6% | 1,270 | 11.4% | 7,470 | 67.0% | 36.1% |
| Ages 25–39 | 27,349 | 3,802 | 13.9% | 2,317 | 8.5% | 6,118 | 22.4% | 29.6% |
| Ages 40–54 | 28,732 | 1,967 | 6.8% | 1,533 | 5.3% | 3,499 | 12.2% | 16.9% |
| Age 55 or older | 22,142 | 2,218 | 10.0% | 1,395 | 6.3% | 3,613 | 16.3% | 17.5% |
| Family status | ||||||||
| Married parent | 22,397 | 1,524 | 6.8% | 1,074 | 4.8% | 2,599 | 11.6% | 12.6% |
| Single parent | 6,010 | 1,413 | 23.5% | 659 | 11.0% | 2,072 | 34.5% | 10.0% |
| Married, no children | 26,770 | 2,239 | 8.4% | 1,544 | 5.8% | 3,783 | 14.1% | 18.3% |
| Unmarried, no children | 34,199 | 9,011 | 26.3% | 3,237 | 9.5% | 12,247 | 35.8% | 59.2% |
| Educational attainment | ||||||||
| Less than high school | 4,766 | 2,220 | 46.6% | 493 | 10.4% | 2,713 | 56.9% | 13.1% |
| High school | 21,484 | 5,419 | 25.2% | 2,455 | 11.4% | 7,873 | 36.6% | 38.0% |
| Some college, no degree | 20,677 | 4,729 | 22.9% | 2,028 | 9.8% | 6,757 | 32.7% | 32.6% |
| Associate degree | 8,871 | 1,046 | 11.8% | 698 | 7.9% | 1,744 | 19.7% | 8.4% |
| Bachelor’s degree or higher | 33,576 | 773 | 2.3% | 840 | 2.5% | 1,613 | 4.8% | 7.8% |
| Family income | ||||||||
| Less than $25,000 | 9,503 | 4,863 | 51.2% | 1,413 | 14.9% | 6,277 | 66.0% | 30.3% |
| $25,000–$49,999 | 15,781 | 3,088 | 19.6% | 2,005 | 12.7% | 5,093 | 32.3% | 24.6% |
| $50,000–$74,999 | 16,393 | 2,221 | 13.5% | 1,226 | 7.5% | 3,447 | 21.0% | 16.6% |
| $75,000–$99,999 | 13,837 | 1,473 | 10.6% | 762 | 5.5% | 2,235 | 16.2% | 10.8% |
| $100,000–$149,999 | 17,954 | 1,559 | 8.7% | 700 | 3.9% | 2,259 | 12.6% | 10.9% |
| $150,000 or more | 15,907 | 983 | 6.2% | 407 | 2.6% | 1,390 | 8.7% | 6.7% |
| Family income-to-poverty ratio | ||||||||
| At or below the poverty line | 4,308 | 2,630 | 61.1% | 502 | 11.6% | 3,131 | 72.7% | 15.1% |
| 101–200% of poverty line | 9,193 | 3,561 | 38.7% | 1,571 | 17.1% | 5,133 | 55.8% | 24.8% |
| 201–400% of poverty line | 26,289 | 4,310 | 16.4% | 2,654 | 10.1% | 6,964 | 26.5% | 33.6% |
| 401% or above | 48,992 | 3,305 | 6.7% | 1,747 | 3.6% | 5,053 | 10.3% | 24.4% |
| Poverty status not available | 595 | 380 | 64.0% | 40 | 6.8% | 421 | 70.7% | 2.0% |
| Work hours | ||||||||
| Part time (<20 hours) | 5,574 | 2,280 | 40.9% | 559 | 10.0% | 2,838 | 50.9% | 13.7% |
| Mid time (20– 34 hours) | 12,937 | 5,365 | 41.5% | 1,541 | 11.9% | 6,906 | 53.4% | 33.4% |
| Full time (35+ hours) | 70,864 | 6,542 | 9.2% | 4,415 | 6.2% | 10,957 | 15.5% | 52.9% |
| Industry | ||||||||
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting | 1,255 | 220 | 17.5% | 84 | 6.7% | 304 | 24.2% | 1.5% |
| Construction | 4,642 | 358 | 7.7% | 254 | 5.5% | 612 | 13.2% | 3.0% |
| Manufacturing | 10,203 | 865 | 8.5% | 572 | 5.6% | 1,437 | 14.1% | 6.9% |
| Wholesale trade | 2,574 | 251 | 9.8% | 158 | 6.1% | 409 | 15.9% | 2.0% |
| Retail trade | 10,613 | 3,532 | 33.3% | 1,129 | 10.6% | 4,661 | 43.9% | 22.5% |
| Transportation, warehousing, utilities | 4,389 | 327 | 7.4% | 235 | 5.3% | 562 | 12.8% | 2.7% |
| Information | 2,061 | 144 | 7.0% | 77 | 3.7% | 221 | 10.7% | 1.1% |
| Finance, insurance, real estate | 6,193 | 331 | 5.4% | 254 | 4.1% | 585 | 9.5% | 2.8% |
| Professional, scientific, management, technical services | 6,263 | 234 | 3.7% | 157 | 2.5% | 391 | 6.2% | 1.9% |
| Administrative, support, and waste management | 2,756 | 577 | 20.9% | 263 | 9.5% | 840 | 30.5% | 4.1% |
| Education | 9,944 | 974 | 9.8% | 481 | 4.8% | 1,455 | 14.6% | 7.0% |
| Health care | 12,460 | 1,978 | 15.9% | 921 | 7.4% | 2,899 | 23.3% | 14.0% |
| Arts, entertainment, recreational services | 1,920 | 591 | 30.8% | 224 | 11.6% | 814 | 42.4% | 3.9% |
| Accommodation | 743 | 269 | 36.2% | 105 | 14.2% | 374 | 50.3% | 1.8% |
| Restaurants and food service | 5,060 | 2,561 | 50.6% | 992 | 19.6% | 3,553 | 70.2% | 17.2% |
| Other services | 3,591 | 805 | 22.4% | 465 | 12.9% | 1,270 | 35.4% | 6.1% |
| Public administration | 4,708 | 169 | 3.6% | 143 | 3.0% | 312 | 6.6% | 1.5% |
| Sector | ||||||||
| For-profit | 66,331 | 12,074 | 18.2% | 5,410 | 8.2% | 17,484 | 26.4% | 84.5% |
| Government | 14,195 | 1,034 | 7.3% | 594 | 4.2% | 1,629 | 11.5% | 7.9% |
| Nonprofit | 8,849 | 1,078 | 12.2% | 510 | 5.8% | 1,589 | 18.0% | 7.7% |
Notes: Values reflect the population likely to be affected by the proposed change in the federal minimum wage. Wage changes resulting from scheduled state and local minimum wage laws are accounted for by EPI’s Minimum Wage Simulation Model. Totals may not sum due to rounding. Shares calculated from unrounded values. Directly affected workers will see their wages rise as the new minimum wage rate will exceed their current hourly pay. Indirectly affected workers have a wage rate just above the new minimum wage (between the new minimum wage and 115 percent of the new minimum). They will receive a raise as employer pay scales are adjusted upward to reflect the new minimum wage.
Source: Economic Policy Institute Minimum Wage Simulation Model using data from the Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Congressional Budget Office. See Cooper, Mokhiber, and Zipperer 2019. Dollar values adjusted by projections for CPI-U in CBO 2018.