Q:  Last week you compared 1975 dollars to 2015 adjusted dollars when you discussed the push to raise the minimum threshold for salaried employees.

That brings me to minimum wage.  A topic that’s also been all over the news with different theories and proposals to raise it. I was wondering, what would the federal minimum wage be if 1975 dollars were adjusted to today?

A:  Great question.  The minimum wage  and the minimum salary threshold aren’t related, they do not affect each other, nor are they compared or benchmarked in any way.  What they do have in common is that they are both static, and therefore neither one has kept up with the cost of living.  Thankfully they’re both finally getting some attention.

To answer your question, in 1975 the minimum wage was $2.10/hr, which in 2015 dollars would be $9.31/hr according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ calculator.  This is no surprise.  I think that all of us (except an adamant few) agree that the current $7.25/hr minimum wage is woefully inadequate and needs to be raised.  What’s being argued is how to go about it in a way that’s fair to workers, yet not too disruptive for business.

What I think should happen, -and what I’d do if I had a magic wand- is raise the federal minimum wage gradually so that by 2018 it’s up to $10/hr.  Then going forward, the rate would be annually indexed to inflation automatically.  NOT dependent on politics.  States and cities can continue doing their own thing.

Here are some interesting numbers :

29                    the number of states with minimum wages higher than the federal

$10.10            the current minimum wage for federal contractors

$12                  what the nonprofit, nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute recommends nationwide by 2020.

12.50 – $15    the current minimum wage in crazy-high cost-of-living cities like  San Francisco and Seattle.

Lastly, I’ll leave you with this food for thought from someone you might not expect:

“There is one rule for the industrialist and that is: make the best quality of goods possible, at the lowest cost possible, paying the highest wages possible.”  –Henry Ford.

© Copyright Eva Del Rio

Eva Del Rio is a human resources consultant, columnist and creator of HR Box™ – tools for small businesses and startups. Send questions to Eva@evadelrio.com