ABSTRACT

Living wage activism has spanned time and space, reaching across decades and national boundaries. Conditions generating living wage movements early in the twentieth century have resurfaced in the twenty-first century, only on a global scale: 'sweated' labour, macroeconomic instability, and job insecurity.
Upon reviewing the empirical evidence, the book's contributors make strong cases both for and against living wage activism. The effective blend of historical, contemporary, and global perspectives provides opportunities for teachers, scholars, and activists to evaluate how we can address low pay at the organizational and macroeconomic levels.

part |54 pages

What is a living?

part |69 pages

Evidence and lessons from US empirical studies

chapter |14 pages

The Miami living wage ordinance

Primary and secondary effects

chapter |17 pages

Minimum wages and living wages

Raising incomes by mandating wage floors

chapter |14 pages

Living wages in US communities

An analysis of costs of services and economic development