As we celebrate Labor Day marking the achievements of American workers, a recent CBS News poll finds most Americans support a hike in the federal minimum wage. The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour and seven in 10 Americans think that it should be higher than that.
Majorities across income groups — those with lower and higher household incomes — feel the federal minimum wage should be higher than it is now. Support for a minimum wage hike is a bit higher among those with lower incomes.
We do see some political divisions, however. Large majorities of Democrats (85%), liberals (90%), independents (72%) and moderates (77%) think the federal minimum wage should be increased, while a much slimmer 52% majority of Republicans agree. And fewer than half of people who identify as conservative would like to see the federal minimum wage increased.
Among conservatives, there is more support for increasing the minimum wage among those with lower incomes than there is among higher income conservatives.
This CBS News/YouGov survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 1,566 U.S. adult residents interviewed between August 10-16, 2021. This sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, and education based on the U.S. Census American Community Survey, and the U.S. Census Current Population Survey, as well as 2020 presidential vote. The margin of error is ±2.8 points.
