The U.S. economy can afford a $15 minimum wage: The value of the federal minimum wage in 2017 if it had kept up with a growing economy
| Actual minimum wage (2017$) | If it had grown with average wages of typical workers | If it had grown with productivity | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | $ 3.80 | ||
| 1939 | $ 4.63 | ||
| 1940 | $ 4.60 | ||
| 1941 | $ 4.38 | ||
| 1942 | $ 3.95 | ||
| 1943 | $ 3.72 | ||
| 1944 | $ 3.66 | ||
| 1945 | $ 4.77 | ||
| 1946 | $ 4.40 | ||
| 1947 | $ 3.85 | ||
| 1948 | $ 3.56 | $5.67 | |
| 1949 | $ 3.61 | $5.75 | |
| 1950 | $ 6.68 | $5.84 | |
| 1951 | $ 6.19 | $6.29 | |
| 1952 | $ 6.07 | $6.46 | |
| 1953 | $ 6.03 | $6.65 | |
| 1954 | $ 5.98 | $6.88 | |
| 1955 | $ 6.00 | $6.99 | |
| 1956 | $ 7.89 | $7.28 | |
| 1957 | $ 7.63 | $7.29 | |
| 1958 | $ 7.42 | $7.49 | |
| 1959 | $ 7.37 | $7.64 | |
| 1960 | $ 7.25 | $7.92 | |
| 1961 | $ 8.25 | $8.06 | |
| 1962 | $ 8.17 | $8.31 | |
| 1963 | $ 8.76 | $8.62 | |
| 1964 | $ 8.65 | $8.92 | |
| 1965 | $ 8.51 | $9.21 | |
| 1966 | $ 8.28 | $9.49 | |
| 1967 | $ 8.99 | $9.78 | |
| 1968 | $ 9.90 | $ 9.90 | $9.90 |
| 1969 | $ 9.47 | $ 10.08 | $9.94 |
| 1970 | $ 9.03 | $ 10.18 | $10.08 |
| 1971 | $ 8.66 | $ 10.39 | $10.46 |
| 1972 | $ 8.40 | $ 10.85 | $10.73 |
| 1973 | $ 7.90 | $ 10.83 | $10.99 |
| 1974 | $ 8.99 | $ 10.56 | $10.82 |
| 1975 | $ 8.71 | $ 10.41 | $11.06 |
| 1976 | $ 9.03 | $ 10.54 | $11.37 |
| 1977 | $ 8.49 | $ 10.64 | $11.50 |
| 1978 | $ 9.15 | $ 10.76 | $11.59 |
| 1979 | $ 9.15 | $ 10.60 | $11.61 |
| 1980 | $ 8.80 | $ 10.30 | $11.52 |
| 1981 | $ 8.68 | $ 10.22 | $11.77 |
| 1982 | $ 8.19 | $ 10.19 | $11.59 |
| 1983 | $ 7.85 | $ 10.19 | $11.94 |
| 1984 | $ 7.54 | $ 10.13 | $12.25 |
| 1985 | $ 7.29 | $ 10.08 | $12.46 |
| 1986 | $ 7.16 | $ 10.11 | $12.72 |
| 1987 | $ 6.93 | $ 10.02 | $12.78 |
| 1988 | $ 6.68 | $ 9.98 | $12.93 |
| 1989 | $ 6.41 | $ 9.93 | $13.03 |
| 1990 | $ 6.92 | $ 9.85 | $13.22 |
| 1991 | $ 7.47 | $ 9.80 | $13.30 |
| 1992 | $ 7.29 | $ 9.79 | $13.80 |
| 1993 | $ 7.11 | $ 9.80 | $13.85 |
| 1994 | $ 6.97 | $ 9.85 | $13.96 |
| 1995 | $ 6.80 | $ 9.88 | $14.02 |
| 1996 | $ 7.40 | $ 9.95 | $14.29 |
| 1997 | $ 7.86 | $ 10.11 | $14.53 |
| 1998 | $ 7.75 | $ 10.38 | $14.83 |
| 1999 | $ 7.59 | $ 10.53 | $15.22 |
| 2000 | $ 7.34 | $ 10.59 | $15.55 |
| 2001 | $ 7.14 | $ 10.68 | $15.79 |
| 2002 | $ 7.03 | $ 10.82 | $16.24 |
| 2003 | $ 6.87 | $ 10.87 | $16.77 |
| 2004 | $ 6.69 | $ 10.80 | $17.22 |
| 2005 | $ 6.47 | $ 10.74 | $17.52 |
| 2006 | $ 6.27 | $ 10.80 | $17.62 |
| 2007 | $ 6.92 | $ 10.92 | $17.74 |
| 2008 | $ 7.47 | $ 10.92 | $17.78 |
| 2009 | $ 8.29 | $ 11.29 | $18.15 |
| 2010 | $ 8.16 | $ 11.37 | $18.68 |
| 2011 | $ 7.91 | $ 11.24 | $18.71 |
| 2012 | $ 7.75 | $ 11.18 | $18.81 |
| 2013 | $ 7.64 | $ 11.24 | $18.87 |
| 2014 | $ 7.52 | $ 11.32 | $18.97 |
| 2015 | $ 7.51 | $ 11.54 | $19.07 |
| 2016 | $ 7.41 | $ 11.68 | $19.10 |
| 2017 | $ 7.25 | $ 11.62 | $19.33 |
Note: Growth in average wages of typical workers measures average wages of production/nonsupervisory workers. Inflation is measured using the CPI-U-RS and the CPI projection for 2017 from the Congressional Budget Office. Productivity is measured as total economy productivity net depreciation.
Source: Adapted from David Cooper, Another Year of Congressional Inaction Has Further Eroded the Federal Minimum Wage, Economic Policy Institute Economic Snapshot, July 24, 2017.