The Minimum Wage Won't Buy Decent Housing In Any State

The national minimum wage in the United States is $7.25 an hour ($15,080 a year). The Republicans will tell you that is enough, and the minimum wage does not need to be raised, because that wage is only paid to teenagers working part-time (and living with their parents). In fact, some congressional Republicans want to eliminate the minimum wage and let employers pay even less than the $7.25 an hour.

THEY ARE LYING! The truth is that a significant majority of minimum wage workers are adults who are trying to support a family -- and that minimum wage is forcing them to live in poverty (even though they work hard at a full-time job). Further, nearly 25% of the American workforce works for the minimum wage, or very close to it. These workers work as hard as anyone in this country, but they are abused by their employers -- and the congressional Republicans think there's nothing wrong with that.

The chart above (found at the Huffington Post) shows how much hourly income would be required to rent a decent 2 bedroom apartment in each state. Note that a minimum wage income would not be sufficient for that in any of the 50 states. To have enough income left over for other expenses, it is recommended that only 30% of income be spent on rent -- but a minimum wage worker would have to spend far more than that.

And it doesn't get any better when other expenses are considered. A minimum wage worker must spend far too high a percentage of their income for all of them (clothing, transportation, food, etc.). And we know that the minimum wage has about 35% less buying power than it did in 1968 (meaning a minimum wage worker can only purchase 65% of what that same worker could purchase in 1968).

This is unacceptable. No one who is willing to work hard at a full-time job should have to live in poverty. The minimum wage clearly needs to be raised to a livable level.