Lily
Roberts
Acting Vice President, Inclusive Economy
Minimum Wage
The Center for American Progress has long worked to build the policy case for raising the minimum wage and eliminating the subminimum wage for people with disabilities and tipped workers. The following research and analyses demonstrate how people deserve to be paid fairly for their work and how a higher minimum wage would—rather than limit job growth—provide financial stability for families and boost overall economic growth.
Latest
Child Tax Credit Helps Georgia Families Weather Emergencies
Personal Story
![]()
Child Tax Credit Helps Georgia Families Weather Emergencies
The expanded child tax credit came right on time to help a Georgia mother of four avoid homelessness.
Raising Wages and Narrowing Pay Gaps With Service Sector Prevailing Wage Laws
Report
![cap-action-social-share]()
Raising Wages and Narrowing Pay Gaps With Service Sector Prevailing Wage Laws
Prevailing wage laws for government service contracts can uplift wages and benefits; reduce racial pay gaps; and could have a range of positive effects on worker turnover, service quality, local budgets, and collective bargaining.
Working-Class Americans in All States Support Progressive Economic Policies
Report
![(A McDonald's employee is shown sweeping the sidewalk in front of a store in Brooklyn, New York.)]()
Working-Class Americans in All States Support Progressive Economic Policies
Across U.S. states and the District of Columbia, members of the working class support policies to raise wages, increase taxes on the wealthy, and boost spending on health care, education, and infrastructure.
Ensuring Government Spending Creates Decent Jobs for Workers
Report
![Iron workers weld metal beams on a new building being constructed in Oxnard, California. (Getty Images/Spencer Weiner)]()
Ensuring Government Spending Creates Decent Jobs for Workers
Pro-worker policymakers should harness the power of federal contracts, grants, loans, and tax expenditures to create good jobs.
The Raise the Wage Effort Is Coming to a City Near You
Report
![Union organizers, students, and supporters for a $15-an-hour minimum wage march through the Oakland section Pittsburgh on Thursday, April 14, 2016. ((AP/Keith Srakocic))]()
The Raise the Wage Effort Is Coming to a City Near You
Conservatives claim the minimum wage kills jobs, but new analysis and academic research poke holes in these claims.
Infographic: $15 and a Union
Article
![(fists)]()
Infographic: $15 and a Union
Workers are standing up for a living wage and a union. Here is why the union is so important.
Raising New York’s Fast-Food Wages Would Be Good for Workers, Taxpayers, and the Economy
Testimony
![cap-action-social-share]()
Raising New York’s Fast-Food Wages Would Be Good for Workers, Taxpayers, and the Economy
Karla Walter, Associate Director of the American Worker Project at the Center for American Progress Action Fund, testifies before the New York State Fast Food Wage Board.
Fight to Raise the Wage Goes Local
Report
![cap-action-social-share]()
Fight to Raise the Wage Goes Local
As city minimum-wage laws are beginning to pick up steam, evidence suggests that raising the minimum wage does not harm local jobs.
The Failure to Raise the Minimum Wage Hurts Iowa’s Families and Economy
Report
![cap-action-social-share]()
The Failure to Raise the Minimum Wage Hurts Iowa’s Families and Economy
Iowa Republican Senate candidate Joni Ernst’s extreme position on the minimum wage has no place in the Hawkeye State.
6 Surprising Facts About the Minimum Wage
Video
![]()
6 Surprising Facts About the Minimum Wage
The federal minimum wage has not been raised in more than five years. Here are six facts explaining why Congress needs to raise it to $10.10 an hour.
It’s Time to Raise the Minimum Wage
Article
![Workers hold a protest on the steps of the state capitol in Nashville, Tennessee, to speak out on issues ranging from increasing the state's minimum wage to supporting public schools. (AP/Erik Schelzig)]()
It’s Time to Raise the Minimum Wage
Evidence shows that increasing the minimum wage is good for workers, their families, and the economy.
The Effects of Minimum Wages on SNAP Enrollments and Expenditures
Article
![]()
The Effects of Minimum Wages on SNAP Enrollments and Expenditures
Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour would lower government spending on federal nutrition assistance by $46 billion over the next 10 years.
Related Priorities
Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice
![]()
Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice
We pursue climate action that meets the crisis’s urgency, creates good-quality jobs, benefits disadvantaged communities, and restores U.S. credibility on the global stage.
Restoring Social Trust in Democracy
![]()
Restoring Social Trust in Democracy
Democracy is under attack at home and abroad. We must act to ensure it is accessible to all, accountable, and can serve as a force of good.
Building an Economy for All
![]()
Building an Economy for All
Economic growth must be built on the foundation of a strong and secure middle class so that all Americans benefit from growth.