The Department of Labor concluded that the first minimum wage, 25 cents per hour in 1938, cost the jobs of 30, 000 to 50, 000 of the 300, 000 workers who were covered and had previously earned below the minimum.

FORBES: The Minimum Wage Typifies Much That Is Wrong With Washington

The law mandated a minimum 25-cent-per-hour wage, in addition to setting the maximum amount of hours most employees could work per week at 44.

FORBES: Minimum Wage: Good Cause Or Economic Pariah?