With the movement toward an increase in the minimum wage to $15 receiving elevated attention, The Century Foundation recently published the report “The Impact of $15 Minimum Wage on Hunger in America,” which explores how a proposed upward adjustment in wages would influence the persistent policy challenge of food insecurity.

As author William M. Rodgers notes, approximately 14 percent of the citizens in the nation suffer from food insecurity at present, a significantly higher portion of the population than the 11 percent who fell into this category in 2007, prior to the Great Recession.

Rodgers’ research outlines the relationship between the minimum wage and food insecurity, while presenting rigorous analysis to quantify the effects of a projected increase.

Joining New Start New Jersey for this discussion is William M. Rodgers, a Fellow at The Century Foundation and Professor of Public Policy and Chief Economist at the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University.