Friday, June 06, 2014

Chart Comparing the Cost of a Movie Ticket to the Federal (USA) Minimum Wage

When I was in High School (a long time ago!) I associated one hour of work as being worth about the cost of a movie ticket.  At the time I made $3.35/an hour.   And a movie ticket cost $3.50.  As it turns out, historically these values have always been pretty close.   Today, a movie costs slightly more than an hour of work ($7.96 vs $7.25).  So it looks like either movie prices should come down a bit, or the minimum wage should be raised. I'm not looking to argue here, just making an observation. :)   Here's a historical chart comparing the cost of a movie with the Federal Minimum wage.  The numbers are pulled from Box Office Mojo, and the US Dept of Labor.

Click on the chart to enlarge. I have meager excel skills, so I apologize in advance that the chart isn't that great.