Minimum Wage is Not Working
I imagine this post may not sit well with the liberals, but it has been swirling around in my head for a while now and I wanted to capture it. I think minimum wage is one of the major problems getting in the way of economic recovery. I believe our recovery will happen, but I think this one construct is challenging the market’s ability to correct. When we have minimum wage, it contributes to the culture of those who have a job and those who don’t–the have/have not culture of employment. When a huge market of unemployed people exist, minimum wage starts to create a very strange economy. The only way to get a job with minimum wage in place is to compete with everyone else in the marketplace. I just posted a 10 hour per week cleaning position and I have gotten over 30 responses. The poor, the unskilled, and those who don’t have a great skill at presenting themselves, or those who don’t speak English well are competing with everyone else that the marketplace has pushed out of other higher paying jobs. As someone who occasionally employs people (or at least hires some help in my life), I can see that the quality of applicants is pretty high. So those who are competing for jobs have to hit a certain threshold in terms of skill. Those who don’t fit that threshold are screwed. If they can’t compete in the marketplace then they are forced to look for income some other way. They could start some kind of business where they can discount their services–many business owners make less than minimum wage or fail completely in the first 3 years. Alternatively, they can stay on public assistance. As a business owner, why shouldn’t I get a price break when I hire someone when there is a competitive marketplace for jobs? I would be able to hire someone quicker at a lower rate as I am rebuilding my business after taking a hit in the...
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