Revisiting the Legacy of the Fight for $15 (with Yannet Lathrop and Dr. T. William Lester)

Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer

Over ten years ago, activists and civic leaders ignited the Fight for $15, a movement that was once seen as radical—even Forbes labeled Nick's support for a $15 minimum wage as “near-insane.” Today, the movement's achievements are undeniable: Higher wages for millions of workers, increased union membership, reducing the racial wealth gap, and now raising the federal minimum wage to $15/ hr is one of the central issues in the 2024 presidential campaign, with two-thirds of voters in support. We thought it would be a good time to revisit this episode from 2023, where Yannet Lathrop and Dr. T. William Lester discuss their report from the National Economic Law Project examining the legacy of the movement and all it has accomplished over the last decade.

This episode originally aired on January 24, 2023.

Yannet Lathrop is a Senior Researcher and Policy Analyst for the National Employment Law Project.

Dr. T. William Lester is Professor and Acting Chair of Urban and Regional Planning at San José State University and Research Professor at UNC Chapel Hill.

Twitter: @NELPnews

Further reading:

Ten-Year Legacy of the Fight for $15 and a Union Movement

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