Wage and salary workers in the U.S. paid minimum wage 1979-2017
Number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates at the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017 (in 1,000s)
by Erin Duffin,
last edited
Sep 13, 2019
This statistic displays the number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates at the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017. In 1979, total 3,997 thousand workers were paid hourly rates at the official minimum wage. In 2017, almost 542 thousand workers were paid hourly rates at the prevailing minimum wage. The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $7.25 per hour in 2017.
Number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates at the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017 (in 1,000s)
Loading statistic...
Expand statistic
| Number of workers in thousands | |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 542 |
| 2016 | 701 |
| 2015 | 870 |
| 2014 | 1,255 |
| 2013 | 1,532 |
| 2012 | 1,566 |
| 2011 | 1,677 |
| 2010 | 1,820 |
| 2009 | 980 |
| 2008 | 286 |
| 2007 | 267 |
| 2006 | 409 |
| 2005 | 479 |
| 2004 | 520 |
| 2003 | 545 |
| 2002 | 567 |
| 2001 | 656 |
| 2000 | 898 |
| 1999 | 1,146 |
| 1998 | 1,593 |
| 1997 | 1,764 |
| 1996 | 1,861 |
| 1995 | 1,956 |
| 1994 | 2,132 |
| 1993 | 2,625 |
| 1992 | 2,982 |
| 1991 | 2,906 |
| 1990 | 1,096 |
| 1989 | 1,790 |
| 1988 | 2,608 |
| 1987 | 3,229 |
| 1986 | 3,461 |
| 1985 | 3,899 |
| 1984 | 4,125 |
| 1983 | 4,261 |
| 1982 | 4,148 |
| 1981 | 4,311 |
| 1980 | 4,686 |
| 1979 | 3,997 |
| Number of workers in thousands | |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 542 |
| 2016 | 701 |
| 2015 | 870 |
| 2014 | 1,255 |
| 2013 | 1,532 |
| 2012 | 1,566 |
| 2011 | 1,677 |
| 2010 | 1,820 |
| 2009 | 980 |
| 2008 | 286 |
| 2007 | 267 |
| 2006 | 409 |
| 2005 | 479 |
| 2004 | 520 |
| 2003 | 545 |
| 2002 | 567 |
| 2001 | 656 |
| 2000 | 898 |
| 1999 | 1,146 |
| 1998 | 1,593 |
| 1997 | 1,764 |
| 1996 | 1,861 |
| 1995 | 1,956 |
| 1994 | 2,132 |
| 1993 | 2,625 |
| 1992 | 2,982 |
| 1991 | 2,906 |
| 1990 | 1,096 |
| 1989 | 1,790 |
| 1988 | 2,608 |
| 1987 | 3,229 |
| 1986 | 3,461 |
| 1985 | 3,899 |
| 1984 | 4,125 |
| 1983 | 4,261 |
| 1982 | 4,148 |
| 1981 | 4,311 |
| 1980 | 4,686 |
| 1979 | 3,997 |
© Statista 2019
About this statistic
Show source
Download
Settings
Share
Download started
Please be patient - this may take a moment
Please be patient - this may take a moment
Description
Source
More information
by Erin Duffin,
last edited
Sep 13, 2019
This statistic displays the number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates at the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017. In 1979, total 3,997 thousand workers were paid hourly rates at the official minimum wage. In 2017, almost 542 thousand workers were paid hourly rates at the prevailing minimum wage. The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $7.25 per hour in 2017.
- Show sources information
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- August 2018
- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 1979 to 2017
- Age group
- 16 years and over
- Supplementary notes
- The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $2.90 in 1979, $3.10 in 1980, and $3.35 in 1981–89. The minimum wage rose to $3.80 in April 1990, to $4.25 in April 1991, to $4.75 in October 1996, to $5.15 in September 1997, to $5.85 in July 2007, to $6.55 in July 2008, and to $7.25 in July 2009. The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $7.25 per hour in 2017. Wage and salary workers, excluding incorporated self employed
Free access to basic statistics
Source
- Show sources information
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- August 2018
More information
- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 1979 to 2017
- Age group
- 16 years and over
- Supplementary notes
- The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $2.90 in 1979, $3.10 in 1980, and $3.35 in 1981–89. The minimum wage rose to $3.80 in April 1990, to $4.25 in April 1991, to $4.75 in October 1996, to $5.15 in September 1997, to $5.85 in July 2007, to $6.55 in July 2008, and to $7.25 in July 2009. The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $7.25 per hour in 2017. Wage and salary workers, excluding incorporated self employed
Statista Accounts:
Access All Statistics. Starting from $588 / Year
Basic Account
Get to know the platform
You only have access to basic statistics.
Premium Account
Your perfect start with Statista
- Instant access to 1m statistics
- Download in XLS, PDF & PNG format
- Detailed references
$49 / Month *
Corporate Account
Full access
Corporate solution including all features.
* All products require an annual contract.
Prices do not include sales tax.
Prices do not include sales tax.
Leading companies trust Statista:
Related Studies: Available to Download in PDF or PPTX Format
All Information
in one Presentation
Minimum Wage in the United States
- 40 page/s
- English
- pptx
- Detailed references
Everything On "Minimum Wage in the United States" in One Document: Edited and Divided into Handy Chapters. Including Detailed References.
I think of Statista as Google for researchers. Statista provides you with the information you search for right away.Dr. Horst Stipp
EVP, Research & Innovation, Advertising Research Foundation
Statistics on "Minimum Wage in the United States"
- Minimum wage rates
The most important statistics
- State minimum wage rates in the United States as of January 1, 2019, by state ( in U.S. dollars)Minimum wages in the United States, by state 2019
- The real and nominal value of the federal minimum wage in the United States from 1938 to 2013, expressed in July 2013 U.S. dollars*Wages in the U.S.: real and nominal value of the minimum wage through 2013
- Ranking of OECD countries by national minimum wage in 2017 (in U.S. dollars)Ranking of OECD countries by national minimum wage 2017
- Minimum wage workforce
The most important statistics
- Number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates at the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017 (in 1,000s)Wage and salary workers in the U.S. paid minimum wage 1979-2017
- Share of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by stateU.S. minimum wage workers 2018, by state
- Number of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by occupation (in thousands)Minimum wage workers in the U.S. 2018, by occupation
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below minimum wage in the United States 2018, by ethnic group (in thousands)U.S. minimum wage workers 2018, by ethnicity
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below minimum wage in the United States 2018, by age (in thousands)Number of minimum wage workers in the U.S. 2018, by age
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below minimum wage in the U.S. 2018, by full and part time status and gender (in thousands)U.S. minimum wage workers in 2018, by gender and full-/part-time status
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by educational attainment (in thousands)Number of U.S. minimum wage workers in 2018, by education
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by marital status (in thousands)U.S. minimum wage workers in 2018, by marital status
- Low wage employment
The most important statistics
- Number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates below the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017 (in 1,000s)Number of workers in the U.S. paid less than the minimum wage 1979-2017
- Percent distribution of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by occupationPercent distribution of U.S. minimum wage workers 2018, by occupation
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by industry (in thousands)U.S. minimum wage workers 2018, by industry
- Number of hours at minimum wage needed to afford a one-bedroom rental unit in the United States in 2017, by stateNumber of hours at minimum wage needed to afford rent for 1BR unit in U.S. 2017
- Annual income requirement for comfortable living in the top ten most populous cities in the United States in 2018 (in U.S. dollars)Annual cost of living in top 10 largest U.S. cities in 2018
Discover Statista
Need help with using Statista for your research?
Tutorials and first steps
Further Content: Statistics, Studies, and Topic Pages
Statistics
- Wage and salary workers paid minimum wage in the U.S. by gender 1979-2017
- Wage and salary workers in the U.S. paid less than minimum wage, by gender 1979-2017
- U.S. wage and salary workers paid hourly rates, by gender 1979-2017
- Wages of food preparation workers in the U.S. 2018, by percentile distribution
- Minimum hourly wage annual increase rate South Korea 2010-2018
- Wages in the U.S.: public opinion on level of minimum wage 2013
- Wages in the U.S.: small-business owners' support for raising the minimum wage 2013
- Wages in the U.S.: public opinion on impact of higher minimum wage on job market 2013
- Wages in the U.S.: public opinion of purpose of minimum wage jobs 2013
- Wages in the U.S.: attitudes towards raising the minimum wage in 2013
- Public opinion on whether the federal government should set a minimum wage 2013
- Wages in the U.S: effect of higher minimum wage on small-business operations 2013
- Real minimum wages in the United States 2000-2017
- U.S. wage and salary workers: number of workers paid hourly rates 1979-2017
- Largest occupations in the U.S. - hourly mean wage 2009
- Italy: prevalence of asbestos-related diseases 2017, by region
- Number of people working in retail salesperson occupations in Canada 2008-2015
- Number of commuters by destination Spain 2013-2017
- Total annual hours worked Japan 2007-2016
- Number of workers across Bihar in India 2012 to 2016
Studies
- Minimum Wage in the United States
- Earnings and wages in the United Kingdom (UK)
- Characteristics of minimum wage workers, 2018
- Average wage and salary in the U.S.
- Wage inequality in the U.S.
- Characteristics of minimum wage workers, 2014
- Characteristics of minimum wage workers, 2015
- Characteristics of minimum wage workers, 2013
- The Growing Movement for $15
- Low Wage Nation
- Worker Health Chartbook 2004
- The staffing industry in the U.S.
- The staffing industry in Canada
- Adecco Group
- ManpowerGroup
Statistics on "Minimum Wage in the United States"
- State minimum wage rates in the United States as of January 1, 2019, by state ( in U.S. dollars)
- The real and nominal value of the federal minimum wage in the United States from 1938 to 2013, expressed in July 2013 U.S. dollars*
- Ranking of OECD countries by national minimum wage in 2017 (in U.S. dollars)
- Number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates at the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017 (in 1,000s)
- Share of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by state
- Number of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by occupation (in thousands)
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below minimum wage in the United States 2018, by ethnic group (in thousands)
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below minimum wage in the United States 2018, by age (in thousands)
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below minimum wage in the U.S. 2018, by full and part time status and gender (in thousands)
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by educational attainment (in thousands)
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by marital status (in thousands)
- Number of wage and salary workers in the United States paid hourly rates below the prevailing Federal minimum wage from 1979 to 2017 (in 1,000s)
- Percent distribution of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by occupation
- Number of workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the minimum wage in the U.S. in 2018, by industry (in thousands)
- Number of hours at minimum wage needed to afford a one-bedroom rental unit in the United States in 2017, by state
- Annual income requirement for comfortable living in the top ten most populous cities in the United States in 2018 (in U.S. dollars)
- Number of workers paid hourly rates at the federal minimum wage in the United States from 1979 to 2017, by gender (in millions)
- Number of workers paid hourly rates below the federal minimum wage in the United States from 1979 to 2017, by gender (in 1,000s)
- Total number of workers paid hourly rates in the United States from 1979 to 2017, by gender (in millions)
- Hourly wage estimates of food preparation workers in the U.S. as of May 2018, by percentile distribution (in U.S. dollars)*
- Annual growth rate of the minimum hourly wage in South Korea from 2010 to 2018
- What do you think the federal minimum wage should be?*
- Small-business owners: would you approve or disapprove of a law that would raise the national minimum wage from 7.25 up to 9.50 U.S. dollars per hour?
- Do you think raising the minimum wage would reduce the number of jobs, increase the number of jobs, or have no impact on the number of jobs?
- Do you view minimum wage jobs as stepping-stones to help lower skilled or younger workers gain skills, or as long-term positions for established workers to support their families?
- Suppose that on Election Day you could vote on key issues as well as candidates. Would you vote for or against a law that would raise the general minimum wage to 9 U.S. dollars an hour?
- Do you think the federal government should set a minimum wage, or not?
- Small-business owners: If a law is passed to increase the minimum wage, please indicate if the following would apply to you as a small-business owner or not.
- Real minimum wages in the United States 2000-2017 (in PPP U.S. dollars)
- Number of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates from 1979 to 2017 (in millions)
- Hourly mean wage for the largest occupations in May 2009 (in U.S. dollars)
- Number of workers suffering from an asbestos-related disease in Italy in 2017, by region
- Number of people working in retail salesperson occupations in Canada from 2008 to 2015 (in millions)*
- Number of commuters in Spain from 2013 to 2017 (in 1,000s), by destination
- Total annual hours worked in Japan from 2007 to 2016
- Number of workers across Bihar in India from FY 2012 to FY 2016 (in 1,000)
Statista Accounts:
Access All Statistics. Starting from $588 / Year
Related topics
About Statista
Statista offers dossiers and reports on over 170 industries. With Statista you are always able to make informed decisions and boost your work efficiency.
Internet & Telecommunications
- Social Media
- E-Commerce
- Online Video & Entertainment
- Advertising & Marketing
Consumer Goods & FMCG
- Alcoholic Beverages
- Cleaning Products
- Cosmetics & Personal Care
- Food & Nutrition
Retail & Trade
- Health & Hygiene
- International Trade
- Shopping Behavior
- Sports & Leisure
Travel, Tourism & Hospitality
- Business Travel
- Leisure Travel
- Accomodation
- Restaurants
Society
- Demographics
- Economy
- Education & Science
- Politics & Government
Transportation & Logistics
- Aviation
- Rail Transport
- Vehicles & Road Traffic
- Water Transport
Please log in to access our additional functions
Register in seconds and access exclusive features.
Basic Account
|
Instant Access
Premium Account
| ||
|---|---|---|---|
Our services
Click the question mark for further information | Free |
$49 per month*
| |
| Basic statistics | |||
| Premium statistics | |||
|
Graph download
| |||
| Download PDF | |||
|
Excel download
| |||
| Register | Purchase now | ||
*Duration: 12 months, billed annually, single license
Yes, let me download!
...and make my research life easier.
Exclusive Corporate feature
This feature is limited to our corporate solutions.
Please contact us to get started with full access to dossiers, forecasts, studies and international data.
Corporate Account
We use cookies to personalize contents and ads, offer social media features, and analyze access to our website. In your browser settings you can configure or disable this, respectively, and can delete any already placed cookies. For details, please see your browser’s Help section (by pressing F1). Please see our privacy statement for details about how we use data.