Texas has far more low-wage workers than the national average, according to a new report from anti-poverty nonprofit Oxfam. Indeed, only six other states have a higher percentage of workers earning less than $17 an hour, the study's threshold for low-wage employment.
While an average of 23.2% U.S. workers are considered low wage employees in Oxfam's study, the Texas average is 29.9%. Only Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and West Virginia have higher percentages of low-wage workers, according to the report.
Oxfam argues that raising the U.S. minimum wage to $17 per hour would benefit more than 39 million workers, allowing them to keep up with rising costs. Of the total whose lives would be improved, 4.5 million reside in Texas.
Although 30 states have effectively raised their minimum wages since 2014, Texas isn't one of them. To Oxfam's point, many of the state's with the lowest percentage of low-income workers have boosted their minimum wage.
"The federal minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 for fifteen years," the report states. "In that time, the cost of living has continued to climb, leaving millions of families working harder than ever, but falling behind."
Oxfam's Texas-specific breakdown also shows that low-wage workers in the state are disproportionately women and people of color.
In the Lone Star State, 36.1% of working women are considered low-wage, while just 24.8% of men fall under the wage threshold. Meanwhile, 36.7% of Texans of color work low-wage jobs, compared to 28.2% of white Texans.
The report follows a 2023 Oxfam study that declared Texas the 47th out of 50 states for workers. That analysis factored in not just the state's low wages but also its dearth of worker protections and its limited rights for employees to organize for better conditions.
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While an average of 23.2% U.S. workers are considered low wage employees in Oxfam's study, the Texas average is 29.9%. Only Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and West Virginia have higher percentages of low-wage workers, according to the report.
Oxfam argues that raising the U.S. minimum wage to $17 per hour would benefit more than 39 million workers, allowing them to keep up with rising costs. Of the total whose lives would be improved, 4.5 million reside in Texas.
Although 30 states have effectively raised their minimum wages since 2014, Texas isn't one of them. To Oxfam's point, many of the state's with the lowest percentage of low-income workers have boosted their minimum wage.
"The federal minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 for fifteen years," the report states. "In that time, the cost of living has continued to climb, leaving millions of families working harder than ever, but falling behind."
Oxfam's Texas-specific breakdown also shows that low-wage workers in the state are disproportionately women and people of color.
In the Lone Star State, 36.1% of working women are considered low-wage, while just 24.8% of men fall under the wage threshold. Meanwhile, 36.7% of Texans of color work low-wage jobs, compared to 28.2% of white Texans.
The report follows a 2023 Oxfam study that declared Texas the 47th out of 50 states for workers. That analysis factored in not just the state's low wages but also its dearth of worker protections and its limited rights for employees to organize for better conditions.
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