In: Economics
Political Economy Question:
Describe the empirical trends of wages, profits since 2009 up to and including the Trump administration.
The minimum wage is set by US labor law and a range of state and local laws.Employers generally have to pay workers the highest minimum wage prescribed by federal, state, and local law. From July 24, 2009 the federal government has mandated a nationwide minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. As of January 2018, there were 29 states with a minimum wage higher than the federal minimum.From 2017 to 2018, eight states increased their minimum wage levels through automatic adjustments, while increases in eleven other states occurred through referendum or legislative action.2018 inflation-adjusted dollars, the federal minimum wage peaked at $11.79 per hour in 1968. If the minimum wage in 1968 had kept up with labor's productivity growth, it would have reached $19.33 in 2017. There is a racial difference in support for a higher minimum wage with most Black and Latino individuals supporting a $15.00 federal minimum wage, and 54% of Whites opposed it. In 2015, about 3% of White, Asian, and Latino workers earned the federal minimum wage .