Remember your first paycheck? Whether you were flipping burgers, stocking shelves, or working a factory line, the amount you took home was shaped by the federal minimum wage, a number that has changed quite a bit since 1940.
The federal minimum wage was established by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. That law, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, covers minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards for workers in both private and government jobs.
Not every state follows the federal rate. Tennessee, for example, has no state minimum wage of its own, so the federal rate of $7.25 applies there. New York, on the other hand, sets its own rates: $17 an hour in New York City, Nassau County, Suffolk County, and Westchester County, and $16 throughout the rest of the state. States with their own laws often add unique rules around tips, Sunday pay, and more. Rhode Island, for instance, requires time-and-a-half pay for work on Sundays and holidays in retail and certain other businesses.
The current federal minimum wage sits at $7.25 an hour. It has not changed since 2009.
Below is every federal minimum wage from 1940 through 2010, along with what each amount would equal in today’s dollars after adjusting for inflation, according to Cheapism.
The 1940s
| Year | Minimum Wage | Adjusted for Inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1940 | $0.30 | $6.86 |
| 1941 | $0.30 | $6.76 |
| 1942 | $0.30 | $6.07 |
| 1943 | $0.30 | $5.64 |
| 1944 | $0.30 | $5.48 |
| 1945 | $0.40 | $7.14 |
| 1946 | $0.40 | $6.98 |
| 1947 | $0.40 | $5.91 |
| 1948 | $0.40 | $5.36 |
| 1949 | $0.40 | $5.29 |
The 1950s
| Year | Minimum Wage | Adjusted for Inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | $0.75 | $10.14 |
| 1951 | $0.75 | $9.38 |
| 1952 | $0.75 | $8.99 |
| 1953 | $0.75 | $8.96 |
| 1954 | $0.75 | $8.86 |
| 1955 | $0.75 | $8.92 |
| 1956 | $1.00 | $11.85 |
| 1957 | $1.00 | $11.51 |
| 1958 | $1.00 | $11.11 |
| 1959 | $1.00 | $10.95 |
The 1960s
| Year | Minimum Wage | Adjusted for Inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | $1.00 | $10.84 |
| 1961 | $1.15 | $12.26 |
| 1962 | $1.15 | $12.18 |
| 1963 | $1.25 | $13.06 |
| 1964 | $1.25 | $12.85 |
| 1965 | $1.25 | $12.73 |
| 1966 | $1.25 | $12.49 |
| 1967 | $1.40 | $13.52 |
| 1968 | $1.60 | $14.91 |
| 1969 | $1.60 | $14.28 |
The 1970s
| Year | Minimum Wage | Adjusted for Inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | $1.60 | $13.45 |
| 1971 | $1.60 | $12.77 |
| 1972 | $1.60 | $12.37 |
| 1973 | $1.60 | $11.93 |
| 1974 | $2.00 | $13.63 |
| 1975 | $2.10 | $12.80 |
| 1976 | $2.30 | $13.14 |
| 1977 | $2.30 | $12.49 |
| 1978 | $2.65 | $13.47 |
| 1979 | $2.90 | $13.49 |
The 1980s
| Year | Minimum Wage | Adjusted for Inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | $3.10 | $12.66 |
| 1981 | $3.35 | $12.23 |
| 1982 | $3.35 | $11.29 |
| 1983 | $3.35 | $10.88 |
| 1984 | $3.35 | $10.44 |
| 1985 | $3.35 | $10.09 |
| 1986 | $3.35 | $9.71 |
| 1987 | $3.35 | $9.57 |
| 1988 | $3.35 | $9.20 |
| 1989 | $3.35 | $8.79 |
The 1990s
| Year | Minimum Wage | Adjusted for Inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | $3.80 | $9.48 |
| 1991 | $4.25 | $10.03 |
| 1992 | $4.25 | $9.78 |
| 1993 | $4.25 | $9.47 |
| 1994 | $4.25 | $9.23 |
| 1995 | $4.25 | $8.98 |
| 1996 | $4.75 | $9.77 |
| 1997 | $5.15 | $10.28 |
| 1998 | $5.15 | $10.12 |
| 1999 | $5.15 | $9.96 |
2000–2010
| Year | Minimum Wage | Adjusted for Inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | $5.15 | $9.69 |
| 2001 | $5.15 | $9.34 |
| 2002 | $5.15 | $9.24 |
| 2003 | $5.15 | $9.00 |
| 2004 | $5.15 | $8.83 |
| 2005 | $5.15 | $8.58 |
| 2006 | $5.15 | $8.25 |
| 2007 | $5.85 | $9.18 |
| 2008 | $6.55 | $9.86 |
| 2009 | $7.25 | $10.91 |
| 2010 | $7.25 | — |
It is something to sit with, isn’t it? That thirty cents an hour in 1940 was worth the equivalent of nearly seven dollars today. The numbers shifted decade by decade, shaped by everything from postwar prosperity to the inflation spikes of the 1970s.
Whatever year you were born, your entry into this world came with a price tag on an hour of work and the economy has never stopped moving since.
