evidence: With the policy debate gridlocked, and the minimum wage frozen at $7.25 for nearly 12 years, real-life economic conditions for tens of millions of low-wage workers have deteriorated. [...] One recent report found that nearly 40 million Americans — 28% of the workforce — earn less than $15 an hour. Most are adults, and a disproportionate number are Black and Latinx workers. A $15-an-hour minimum wage would give full-time workers a minimum annual salary of about $31,000. [...] In an interview, Derenoncourt said that over 60% of nursing home workers in that earlier era were paid less than the newly set minimum wage — but the research found no evidence of significant job losses after it went into effect.