Examining the Minimum Wage
As the Democratic-controlled Congress prepares to pass President Joe Biden’s $1.9
trillion COVID-19 relief package a sticking point in the negotiations is an amendment
that would gradually raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025. That would more
than double the current federal minimum wage of $7.25, where it has sat since 2009.
This week we air a pre-pandemic panel on if, when and how we should raise the minimum wage, as well as its benefits and risks to the economy. The panel includes Mark Knold, chief economist at the Utah Department of Workforce Services; Marshall Steinbaum, assistant professor of economics at the University of Utah; and Juliette Tennert, Director of Economic and Public Policy Research at the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute.