The problem is not minimum wage - the problem that we have many Americans who are unemployable at ANY wage, even zero.
Federal labor laws in general as applied among the several States are not legal. Situationally among the Territories or the District of Columbia they would be because the Constitution permits the Congress more general legislative power in those. Otherwise, there being no enumerated power, the 10th Amendment should be the controlling Law.
It will - which is a good thing. Globalism has killed the lower end of the workforce's wages and as a result wages have stagnated, adjusted for inflation, for 30+ years. We, as a nation. desperately NEED wage inflation.
If it takes this to do so be it.
Flame away.
They are unconstitutional because government does not have the right to set a minimum or maximum hourly rate of pay. Any law that “allows” it is invalid and not binding.
Other invalid laws: Affirmative action, draft registry for men only, requirement that men who pretend to be women can play on a woman’s team. Asset “forfeiture.” Minority setasides. Race quotas. College admission based on race.
Or, instead of the trickle-up effect, more and more things become automated or go to AI?
Wouldn’t take long for some computer nerds out there to develop an algorithm to make a decision on your credit mortgage application. Think about it. You can buy a car on-line, from start to finish. No human interaction needed. No haggling with a salesman/woman. No going to see the finance manager for your loan terms and signing a contract.
$15 hurts the people, the most, that it’s supposedly trying to help.
Thought about another way....Wages go up, prices go up. What was once a $100,000 house, now becomes a $150,000 house in a day. No one is getting ahead.
And like what is done when hedge funds show up and take over companies. They automate or whittle the workforce down to bare bones. And the mantra from management is....you don’t want to do the work, we’ll find someone that will.
And let’s not forget about the eager workers flooding the border as we type.
“My question is what stops the min wage from causing a trickle-up effect throughout the entire spectrum of incomes?”
Nothing stops it and it will certainly happen as it has happened before. In addition to many, many layoffs which the increase in the min. wage will cause there will be a whole lot of unhappy workers who after working hard to elevate their wages see untrained and unproven new hires earning exactly what they are. These employees will want more in wages and if they don’t get it they will begin looking for another job.
If the employer wants to keep the worker he will either pay him more and if cannot afford that he will simply lay off another worker so he can afford it.
In the end wages are always determined by the market and are a function of supply and demand.
Just remember a starting ICU nurse barely gets $15 an hour
The American people are too stupid to understand the economic fallacies and unintended consequences of gov't setting and hiking a wage decree.
Ask supporters of the minimum-wage why aren't they lobbying their state senators or legislators to increase THEIR state minimum-wage. I don't care if CA or NY or IL raise their minimum-wage to $1,000 bucks an hour.
Call it the Full Restaurant Automation Act.
Basic economics. Capital will seek out the least expensive option. When cost of labor exceeds cost of automation (I seem to recall I read that is $12/hr for fast food but someine can check me), automation wins.
And automation does not call in sick, need quarterly reviews, require HR, unionize, etc.
So, bring it. I am OK with kiosk ordering. They do it for McD at DFW .
Union wages are tied to the min wage.
STOP THE PRESSES! LET’S BRING BACK THE 5 CENT CANDY BAR!
When politicians particularly members of today’s in name only democrat party started pushing for a higher minimum wage. The focus should have been on purchasing power of the lowest coin of the realm. Each time it was passed the price of an item like an individual candy bar and everything else increased. What began at 5 cents in the 1940’s was when the minnimum wage was 50 cents an hour . As the rate steadily increased so did candy bar prices to what it is today. The result has always been since it began devaluing the purchasing power of the dollar.What would happen if we revalued the penny into a dimes or a quarters purchasing power ?
Let’s not fall for the Democraps attempt to use minimum wage laws designed to prevent child labor exploitation with their push for a “living wage” to establish a guaranteed wage that will only be pushed higher and higher as the goverment managed economy concept becomes more and more prevalent to the detriment of a free market economy.