U.S. Department of Labor
$7.25/hr
Effective July 24, 2009 and still current as of March 30, 2026.
Federal minimum wage
Verified Public Indicators
WAGE AUDIT
This page starts with the clearest national wage numbers we can document from the Department of Labor and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Broader employer, monopoly, and case-by-case labor claims will be added only when the records are attached.
Current focus
National wage floors, full-time earnings, and the housing threshold those numbers have to clear.
Reporting rule
This page only promotes claims into the headline layer when there is a visible government or filing-backed source stack.
Why it matters
Wages are not an isolated labor story. They collide with rent, homeownership, healthcare, and household survival at the same time.
Current Benchmarks
National Wage And Housing Indicators
These are the live public indicators behind the wage file. Every card links straight back to the primary source or derived benchmark.
Derived from the federal minimum wage
$15,080
Computed as $7.25 x 40 hours x 52 weeks.
Full-time pay at federal minimum
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
$1,204
Full-time wage and salary workers, 2025 annual average.
Median weekly earnings
Derived from BLS weekly earnings
$62,608
Computed as the 2025 BLS median weekly earnings multiplied by 52.
Annualized median full-time earnings
Derived from DOL and BLS figures
24.1%
$15,080 divided by $62,608.
Minimum-wage schedule vs. annualized median
Scale View
The Pay Gap Reads Faster As A Chart
Users should not have to do all the math in their heads. These three figures make the file easier to scan: a federal minimum-wage year, a typical full-time year, and the 20 percent down payment tied to the median new home.
Full-time pay at the federal minimum wage
Based on $7.25 an hour for 40 hours a week over 52 weeks.
$15,080
Annualized median full-time earnings
BLS 2025 annualized from the national median weekly earnings figure.
$62,608
20% down payment on the median new home
Computed from the January 2026 national median new-home sale price.
$80,100
Interpretation
Work Is Losing The Race
The numbers are simple enough to read, but they become much clearer when they sit beside each other.
A federal minimum-wage year is still 24.1% of the annualized national median for full-time workers.
Even the national median full-time earnings figure does not cover the $80,100 down payment on the median new home.
That does not prove every city or every employer is identical. It does show why this site keeps treating wages, housing, and household survival as one story instead of three separate ones.
What The Record Supports
What We Can Say Right Now
The point of this file is to draw a hard line between what is already visible in the record and what still needs reporting.
The federal minimum wage remains $7.25/hr, and the Department of Labor still lists July 24, 2009 as the effective date for that floor.
A full-time schedule at that wage works out to $15,080 a year before taxes. The BLS reports median weekly earnings of $1,204 for full-time wage and salary workers in 2025, which annualizes to $62,608.
That means a full-time minimum-wage schedule is about 24.1% of the annualized national median for full-time workers. That is a defensible national benchmark; it is not a claim about any one city, employer, or sector.
Publication Guardrails
Claims We Are Not Publishing Yet
This is where the file draws its line. Readers should be able to see what is still waiting on records instead of having to guess.
Exact CEO-to-worker ratios for specific chains until the company filings and methodology are attached.
Distribution-concentration percentages and Sysco-style case claims until market-share data is documented.
Historical injury or scheduling case studies unless we can show the underlying OSHA, legislative, or court record.
Source Stack
Public Records Behind The File
These are the main public record systems behind the wage numbers on this page and the deeper labor reporting that will follow.
Primary Source
Department of Labor Minimum Wage
Federal wage floor and statutory effective date.
Primary Source
BLS Usual Weekly Earnings
Median earnings benchmarks for full-time workers.
Primary Source
OSHA Severe Injury Reports
Public workplace injury records we can use for future labor case files.
Primary Source
FTC Cases and Proceedings
Competition and merger records relevant to concentration claims.
Latest From This File
Linked reporting for Low Wages
Stories stay in the main feed, but they should also land back on the issue file they belong to. This desk currently has 2 linked stories.
Publishing Logic
The Desk Holds The File
Use the story feed for the running report. Use the issue file to keep the source trail, the framing, and the latest linked coverage in one place.
Open the full story feed.
Last standards review: March 31, 2026
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