Minimum Wage / Living Wage

Self-Sufficiency Standard reports for 35 states, District of Columbia and New York City.

These reports by Wider Opportunities for Women show what hourly wage and monthly/yearly income are needed for families of different sizes to actually make ends meet.

Economic Snapshots: Minimum wage increasingly lags poverty line

This Economic Snapshot by The Economic Policy Institute examines how the minimum wage is at its lowest real value in over 50 years and has not been raised since 1997. As the basic income required to support a family has grown with inflation and the minimum wage has not kept pace with the rising costs of goods. As a result, federal inaction leaves minimum wage workers in an increasingly dire situation.

Making Sense of the Minimum Wage

This report by The Economic Poilicy Institute summarizes a report “Economic Effects of State Minimum Wage Increases,” The paper, by EPI economic analyst Liana Fox, examines the methods and findings of the major research that has been done on the effects of minimum wage raises.

The Economic Impact of Local Living Wages by The Economic Policy Institute

The astounding growth of the living wage movement has been a response to the predicament of Americans who work but are unable to make ends meet, as well as to the public policies contributing to the problem. Public policies have exacerbated the problem from the federal level to the local level. Despite having common goals, living wage laws vary considerably in practice.