Fewer Americans are earning less than $15 an hour, but Black and Hispanic women make up a bigger share of them

A $15 minimum wage would hit differently now than when it was first widely discussed some years ago. The share of Americans earning less than $15 has fallen steadily over the past six years — and become increasingly female and increasingly Black and Hispanic.

As the United States nears its 12th year with a federal minimum wage of $7.25 and a raise appears both possible and evasive, it is worth stepping back and calculating exactly who earns less than $15 in the United States right now, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.