It’s in the air. And it’s global. Even The Economist noticed.

In a piece called “The new minimalism” (subscription required), the magazine looked at a whole set of industrialized countries where people are just fed up with low pay:

The main reason for the new activism in places with flexible labour markets, like America and Britain, is anger about pay soaring at the top and stagnating for everyone else. Setting a reasonably generous pay floor is seen as a good way of ensuring that nobody who works falls too far behind. In Germany and Switzerland, that task was traditionally carried out through collective bargaining. But in recent years unions and left-leaning politicians have accepted flexible pay and conditions to stop jobs shifting to Asia and eastern Europe.

And:

The next wave of activism is likely to come not from national governments, but from cities, districts and sensitive sectors of the economy. Sea Tac, a suburb of Seattle, introduced a $15 hourly minimum in January. Later this year Los Angeles plans a council vote on whether to mandate a rate of $15.37 for hotel workers. San Francisco has raised its threshold to $10.50; lawmakers in Chicago want to hold an advisory referendum on a $10 rate in the mid-term elections in November. In Britain Mr Miliband has mused that government contracts should be reserved for firms that pay a “living wage” significantly higher than the minimum. Such measures may turn out to be stages in a long campaign.