USA HISTORY

CONTEMPORARY AMERICA (1992 2013)

BILL CLINTON

[SOURCES]
Clinton successfully increased the minimum wage from $4.25 to ____ an hour?

(A) $4.30

(B) $4.75

(C) ** $5.15; nearly a whole dollar

EXPLANATIONS BELOW

Concept note-1: -Clinton signed North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) into law, along with many other free trade agreements. He also enacted significant welfare reform. His deregulation of finance (both tacit and overt through the Gramm–Leach–Bliley Act) has been criticized as a contributing factor to the Great Recession.

Concept note-2: -The federal minimum wage for covered nonexempt employees is $7.25 per hour.

Concept note-3: -If the minimum wage is set too high, it will likely affect a large number of workers and this could have unexpectedly large impacts on average labour costs and on the total wage bill that employers must pay. This, in turn, could trigger price inflation and/or reduce the level of employment.