Can a Minimum Wage Worker Stay Above the Poverty Line?
In 2008, the federal hourly minimum wage was $6.55. In the majority of states, the state minimum wage is the same as the federal minimum wage, but where they differ, the higher standard applies. Given 2008 poverty thresholds (the latest year available), a full time worker in a family of four with two childrenand no other workers would need to earn $10.50 per hour to keep the family above the poverty line. In states where the state minimum wage was the same as the federal wage, there was a $3.95 per hour difference between the minimum wage and the wage needed to live above the poverty line for a family of four in 2008. The table below shows the state minimum wages in the west coast states of California, Oregon, and Washington in 2008 as well as the gap between what a worker would earn for full-time, year-round work at minimum wage and the federal poverty level. No state’s minimum wage was sufficient to raise a full-time worker over the poverty threshold for a family of four (if they are
