Raise the Wage Act

The Raise the Wage Act is a proposed United States law that would increase the federal minimum wage to US$15.[1][2] It has been introduced in each United States Congress since 2017.

Raise the Wage Act of 2021
Long titleTo provide for increases in the Federal minimum wage, and for other purposes.
Announced inthe 117th United States Congress
Number of co-sponsors199
Legislative history

Background

Federal Minimum Wage

The minimum wage in the United States is set by U.S. labor law and a range of state and local laws. The first federal minimum wage was created as part of the National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933, signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, but declared unconstitutional. In 1938 the Fair Labor Standards Act established it at $0.25 an hour ($4.54 in 2019 dollars). Its purchasing power peaked in 1968 at $1.60 ($11.76 in 2019 dollars). The Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 has set the minimum wage at $7.25 per hour since 2009.

Provisions

Minimum Wage Increases

The most recently introduced bill would gradually increase the minimum wage over the next 5 years as follows: [3]

Regular Employee
Effective Date New Minimum Wage
The next year on January 1 $9.50
1 year later $11.00
2 years later $12.50
3 years later $14.00
4 years later $15.00
Employee's with Disabilities
Effective Date New Minimum Wage
The next year on January 1 $5.00
1 year later $7.50
2 years later $10.00
3 years later $12.50
4 years later $15.00

Tipped Employees

The bill raises the minimum wage to $4.95 an hour for tipped employees and their employers.[3]

New Employees that are 20 years old or less

The bill raises the minimum wage to $6.00 an hour for newly hired employees who are 20 years older or less.[3]

Legislative history

As of April 23, 2021:

Congress Short title Bill number(s) Date introduced Sponsor(s) # of cosponsors Latest status
115th Congress Raise the Wage Act H.R. 15 May 25, 2017 Bobby Scott

(D-VA)

 171 Died in committee
S. 1242 May 25, 2017 Bernie Sanders

(D-VT)

 31 Died in committee
116th Congress Raise the Wage Act H.R. 582 January 16, 2019 Bobby Scott

(D-VA)

 205 Passed the House
S. 150 January 16, 2019 Bernie Sanders

(D-VT)

 32 Died in committee
117th Congress Raise the Wage Act of 2021 H.R. 603 January 28, 2021 Bobby Scott

(D-VA)

 199 Referred to Committees of Jurisdiction
S. 53 January 26, 2021 Bernie Sanders

(D-VT)

 37 Referred to Committees of Jurisdiction

See also

References
  1. "The Raise the Wage Act, Explained". Indivisible. 2019-05-10. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  2. "Minimum wage fight: 'There's no recovery without raising it'". BBC News. 2021-03-26. Retrieved 2021-04-23.
  3. "Text - H.R.603 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): Raise the Wage Act of 2021". www.congress.gov. 2021-01-28. Retrieved 2021-03-14.

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