There is no record of national employment going down each and every time national minimum wage was increased. Economists say that it would also stimulate the economy so there is more demand for producers.
And it likely wouldn't be since our minimum raise increases have been few and far between and incremental...a
far cry from the call for changing it right now to a "Living" wage. Such as the $12 number thrown out earlier in this thread as a possibility.
The modern minimum wage began in 1978 at $2.65
Over the next three years it increased $.70 cents, with increases of 25, 20, and then 25 cents.
It then didn’t increase for another 9 years at which point it went up $.45 in consecutive years.
It went up $.50 five years late and $.40 the year after.
Ten years after it jumped $.70 over three straight years.
It should be noted, the last two years of those record jumps we absolutely
DID lose substantial jobs in the market. I am not claiming this to be a direct response to the hike in the minimum wage, but at least in recent history there absolutely is a record of employment going down at a time when the minimum wage is substantially increased.
Still, those “Substantial” increases are collectively all lower than a dollar in a particular year, with only ONE prior to 2007 being greater than fifty cents.
That’s an increase of $4.60 over a THIRTY FOUR year period. That’s an average increase of $.13 and a half cents a year.
On the flip side, bumping to a “living wage” such as was described in this thread…say $12….is a $4.75 dollar increase. Seemingly desired to occur in an immediate fashion. And that number was thrown out there with a statement that it may likely not be enough.
Yes, an occasional increase of $.25 every few years or around a dollar every decade is not likely to significantly impact the job market in a significant way. However, incremental updates to the Minimum Wage is a
staggeringly different situation than a significant spike in an attempt to create a “livable wage”. What you’re attempting to do is move the goal posts by referencing historical data on the Minimum Wage while ignoring the fact that what is being called for is unquestionably an entirely different animal than those historical actions.
An increase of $.15 cents an hour is not going to have the same impact as a $4.75 dollar and hour increase. That’s common sense. Attempting to compare them is ridiculous
Seems a much better alternative to me to than taxpayer funded welfare.
Only when one is functioning under the premise that the only two actions possible to be taken are increase tax payer funded welfare or institute government mandated increases to wages. Sadly, despite your desire to convince people the world you fabricate in your mind is reality, it's not and our answers are not only the "A" and "B" option you provide.