Low-Wage Work in Colorado
Colorado workers earning low wages have experienced significant real wage increases, even during times of high inflation. To protect these gains and further close the gap, it is crucial to establish strong labor standards such as a higher minimum wage and rigorous enforcement of existing laws.
The tides have turned in the labor market, favoring workers like never before. But this window of opportunity may not stay open for long.
Colorado workers and advocates have been trying to fortify the gains made during the pandemic, and recent changes to Colorado’s state minimum wage policy present opportunities to do so. In 2019, House Bill 1210 gave local governments within Colorado the authority to establish a local minimum wage higher than the state minimum wage, which many localities are now considering.
Our analysis of low-wage work in Colorado shows that many of the common low-wage jobs in Colorado have been paying more in the last two years, and Denver’s minimum wage is at a historic high, promoting a more equitable and sustainable economy across the state.
Recent research suggests that local wage ordinances are one of many useful policy tools to “lock in the gains made by low-wage workers” and ensure that rising inflation and the lack of federal action on minimum wage won’t push us back into the status quo of slower growth for low-wage workers (Shierholz, 2018; Gould and deCourcey, 2023).
