Members of the progressive caucus have strongly advocated for increasing the minimum wage to $15 in line with the "Fight for $15" movement. If history is any guide, though, the fight to increase the minimum wage will not be an easy one. The recent attempt to raise the minimum wage through budget reconciliation misses a key point from the passage of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the first bill to establish a minimum wage: compromise. They must therefore work with Republicans to increase the minimum wage, even if it means settling on a lower wage increase in the short run. Since 2009, some 29 states have raised the minimum wage from anywhere between $8 to $15.

Source: The Nation March 11, 2021 16:04 UTC