skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Minimum Wage Would be $18.85 if Tied to Productivity

play audio
Play

Wednesday, August 3, 2016   

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - If the federal minimum wage had grown at the same pace as increases in worker productivity, it would be nearly $19 an hour in 2016, according to new analysis from the Economic Policy Institute.

This summer marks the seven-year anniversary of the last time the federal minimum wage was raised - from $6.55 to $7.25 an hour - and the buying power of those dollars has fallen by 10 percent because of inflation.

Until the 1960s, the minimum wage was raised at roughly the same pace as increases in worker productivity, said study author, David Cooper, senior economic analyst with the Economic Policy Institute.

"Had that trend continued since 1968 and we had continued to raise the minimum wage pretty regularly every year,” Cooper said, "we would have a minimum wage today of close to $19 an hour."

According to the National Federation of Independent Business, raising the federal wage isn't possible for all businesses, especially in the South and parts of the Midwest. Missouri's minimum wage is currently $7.65 an hour - 40 cents higher than the federal rate.

Cooper said raising the wage floor also helps middle-class workers get paid more, and has a positive impact on local economies.

"Low-wage workers tend to spend every single dollar that they receive, because they have to, just in order to make ends meet,” he said. "So if you raise the minimum wage, you're transferring income to folks who are going to go out and spend it right away. That can mean more customers coming through the door for most businesses."

The Democratic Party recently added a $15 per hour minimum wage to its platform, and Donald Trump has also said he is in favor of an increase.



get more stories like this via email

more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Education advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase funding for programs to combat the teacher shortage. Around 37% of schools nationwide …

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021