New Zealand set the first national minimum wage in 1894, for women and children only.
New Zealand passed the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act in 1894, creating the world's first national framework for setting minimum wages. The law established compulsory arbitration of labor disputes and empowered a court to set binding minimum wage rates, initially focused on protecting women and young workers in specific industries.1
Australia's state of Victoria followed in 1896 with the Factories and Shops Act, which created wages boards empowered to set minimum rates for specific trades.2
The United Kingdom enacted the Trade Boards Act in 1909, targeting so-called "sweated" industries where wages were extremely low and working conditions dangerous. Winston Churchill, then President of the Board of Trade, argued in parliamentary debate that where conditions existed in which workers had no organization and no bargaining power, the state was justified in intervening.3
In the United States, Massachusetts became the first state to pass a minimum wage law in 1912, covering only women and children. The law was advisory rather than mandatory.4
The U.S. federal minimum wage was established by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, signed by President Franklin Roosevelt. The initial rate was 25 cents per hour, covering workers in industries engaged in interstate commerce.5
As of 2024, the federal minimum wage in the United States remains $7.25 per hour, unchanged since 2009. Over 30 states and numerous cities have set their own rates higher than the federal floor.6