[Amberdawn]

It makes one wonder what other workers will want for their labor. If you can make $15 an hour at McDonalds, what will home health aides ask for? They start at about $9.50 an hour. I’m sure many jobs will be automated, but some just can’t be.

[kaehurowing]

The only point of the minimum wage is that all union wage contracts are tied to it. If the minimum wage gets increased, then under contracts union wages must increase the same.

[DannyTN]

I don't think the minimum wage is useless, but it would be a mistake to do this now during high unemployment.

• Many businesses are barely surviving and the added expense will sink them.
• Others will layoff more people.
• Almost doubling the minimum wage at one time is too big a shock to employers, needs to be more gradual.
• And you can't have high minimum wage laws or other social programs without protective tariffs.
• China's not going to raise their minimum wage to $15, but they will be happy to take more of our jobs and industries.
• And it doubles the incentive to automate and eliminate those jobs completely.

[Don Corleone]

The MARXISTS know this. It is their way to get more and more people dependent on their huge government.

[SunTzuWu]

There should be NO mandated minimum wage. Jobs are worth what someone is willing to pay for the work that needs doing. If no one will do it for $5 per hour the wage must go up or the job remain undone.

The real minimum wage is ZERO as may people will find out if this passes.

[DannyTN]

Here's my counter proposal.

• No increases in minimum wage unless unemployment is at or below 4.5% (it got down to 3.5% under Trump).
• Increases must be staggered 6 months apart. If the unemployment rate is not at or below 4.5%, another increase will not be considered for 6 months.
• Cap of $15. Increases above that require congressional approval.
• No increases more than 20% at a time (Rounded to nearest $0.10). 7.50 * 1.2 = $9.00; $9 * 1.2 = $10.80; $10.8 * 1.2 = 12.96 = $13. $13 * 1.2 = $15.6 = $15. So the increase would be split into 4 increases, and would occur in a minimum of 2 years if and only if the unemployment rate stays low.
• Any loop holes should be closed or at least reconsidered.
• Anyone hiring illegal workers and paying them less than minimum wage forfeits their business. And paying illegals minimum wage, get's fined heavily.
• If the unemployment rate stays is above 4.5% then tariffs will be increased by 2% on all imports. If the unemployment rate is below 3.5% then tariffs can decrease 2%.
• The tariff increases and reductions can be weighted based on industry and product type. In other words, we could raise the tariff 4% on high tech goods, and not raise the tariff at all on an equal amount of low tech goods. This way we recover the high tech industries that we want, while using cheap overseas labor for low tech industries.

[NobleFree]

Facts are stubborn things:

“It is no accident that before the advent of the minimum wage law, unemployment rates for all age categories were similar. Afterward, the unemployment rate of youths was double that of middle-aged people and the unemployment rate of black people was double that of white people. This is due to the minimum wage, not to any imaginary white or age “privilege.””

[mywholebodyisaweapon]

Good old Walter. Thanks for posting from him. He’s probably the leading Libertarian Anarchist economist still around.

Always a good read...

[GMMC0987]

The actual minimum wage is ZERO, and nothing politicians do can change it.

[NetAddicted]

Peruse later.

[MV=PY]

Excellent article, thanks for posting.

The REAL minimum wage is $0, and that is what jobseekers get when they cannot offer the value of the official “minimum wage” to an employer.

Economics 101, supply, demand, and price.

[Osage Orange]

Personally I don’t need an ECON Prof to tell me and us...what a stupid idea it is....

[TianaHighrider]

Oddly, you hardly hear anyone point out raising minimum wage REDUCES the paycheck power of someone who worked years to make more than minimum wage.

All those years of tiny raises are now wiped out as you ate now back on the same level as a new worker with no experience.

[central_va]

Globalism has destroyed American wage earning potential. We need wage inflation. I am for the $15/hr min. wage. Maybe in three of four 1 year incremental steps.

[Hot Tabasco]

If you have 10 employees in a restaurant and the minimum wage increases by $5, that's 5 x 10 x 10hrs/day x 7days = $3,500 per week.......

To maintain the profit margin you have to increase the cost of your food which will affect the elderly who are now on fixed incomes.....