The Facts on Raising the Minimum Wage When Unemployment Is High

[TruthOut10]

Increasing the Minimum Wage During Rough Economic Times Does Not Kill Jobs

Raising the minimum wage would be good for our economy. A higher minimum wage not only boosts workers’ incomes—something that is sorely needed to boost demand and get the economy going—but it also reduces turnover and shifts businesses toward a high-road, high-human-capital model.

Still, some policymakers may be nervous about increasing the minimum wage while unemployment is so high. Yet, both the federal and states governments have raised the minimum wage numerous times during periods of high unemployment and the evidence indicates that employment has been unaffected.

A significant body of academic research has found that raising the minimum wage does not result in job losses even during hard economic times. There are at least five different academic studies focusing on increases to the minimum wage made during periods of high unemployment—with unemployment rates ranging from 7 percent to 12.3 percent—that find an increase in the minimum wage has no significant effect on employment levels. The results are likely because the boost in demand and reduction in turnover provided by a minimum wage counteracts the higher wage costs.

Similarly, a simple analysis of increases to the minimum wage on the state level, even during periods of state unemployment rates above 8 percent, shows that the minimum wage does not kill jobs. Indeed the states in our simple analysis had job growth slightly above the national average.

The Facts on Raising the Minimum Wage When Unemployment Is High | Center for American Progress Action Fund

 

[Avorysuds]

I get so tired of stupid people posting chit all over the boards. Talk of raising the min wage is nothing more than vote buying, just like deductions and welfare. If raising min wage was the answer, why not make it 40 buck an hour? Because you would have a collapse in the economy.... If min wage fixed poverty, why are there so many mother fuckers living in poverty?

More or less, the retarded idea of a min wage has absolutely failed. So by all means, keep doing more of something that fails to ever live up to a single benchmark ever set at any period in time since it's conception.

 

[Papageorgio]

A Progressive scheme to keep people unemployed, it keeps the unemployable, unemployed because businesses won't take a chances.

 

[EdwardBaiamonte]

A Progressive scheme to keep people unemployed, it keeps the unemployable, unemployed because businesses won't take a chances.

why discriminate against those who don't make minimum wage???

Why not mandate that everyone make $100 per hour?????? or $500. We could all be rich!!!!

Liberals have no where near the IQ to deal with this subject.

 

[JimmieD]

The classical economic position that says raising the min. wage increases unemployment works ceteris paribus - ie, all else being held constant. But in the real world, all other things are not held constant. Increasing the min. wage may or may not have a significant impact on employment; it depends on a host of other variables as well that may or may not have an even larger effect on employment.

 

[Blooper]

I get so tired of stupid people posting chit all over the boards. Talk of raising the min wage is nothing more than vote buying, just like deductions and welfare.

Just like tax cuts and deregulation? Or voter ID laws and entitlement cuts, which appeal to racism and a near criminal lack of social generosity?

If raising min wage was the answer, why not make it 40 buck an hour? Because you would have a collapse in the economy.... If min wage fixed poverty, why are there so many mother fuckers living in poverty?

Why hasn't deregulation and tax cuts fixed the economy? Oh, because there's not been enough.

So my response to your question is the same.

 

[Papageorgio]

I get so tired of stupid people posting chit all over the boards. Talk of raising the min wage is nothing more than vote buying, just like deductions and welfare.

Just like tax cuts and deregulation? Or voter ID laws and entitlement cuts, which appeal to racism and a near criminal lack of social generosity?

If raising min wage was the answer, why not make it 40 buck an hour? Because you would have a collapse in the economy.... If min wage fixed poverty, why are there so many mother fuckers living in poverty?

Why hasn't deregulation and tax cuts fixed the economy? Oh, because there's not been enough.

So my response to your question is the same.

Actually, the history of Progressives wanting to have minimum wage laws is steeped in eugenics and racism.

 

[Rozman]

A Progressive scheme to keep people unemployed, it keeps the unemployable, unemployed because businesses won't take a chances.

why discriminate against those who don't make minimum wage???

Why not mandate that everyone make $100 per hour?????? or $500. We could all be rich!!!!

Liberals have no where near the IQ to deal with this subject.

Sounds like sound financial advise.
Everyone gets a raise.
All politicians get their salaries tripled.
All corporate CEO's have their compensation reduced by two thirds.
All stores have a policy that for every item bought you get one for free.
If you are getting food stamps you get $1,000.00 a week in cash for life.

Now we can get this Obama economy moving again.....

WTF are we doing in this country...

The Libs want more and more and more and more....spend till you drop.

 

[jtpr312]

Stupid thinking; Raising the minimum wage would be good for our economy. A higher minimum wage not only boosts workers’ incomes—something that is sorely needed to boost demand and get the economy going—but it also reduces turnover and shifts businesses toward a high-road, high-human-capital modeltupid thinking. Raising the minimum wage will not help workers, it will cause companies to lay off workers, adding to the sky high UI rates. A large number of minimum wage jobs are entry level jobs in industries that cater to taking people's excess disposable income. Places like fast food joints for example. These places are NOT going to lose money, especially during times when less people have the money to waste on their goods or services, so to recoup their losses if the minimum wage rate is raised, they will not hire as many entry level workers and may even end up laying off workers. The federal govt should have no say in what an Employer is willing to pay or what an employee is williing to do the job for. Let the market find it's own levels.

 

[oldfart]

I get so tired of stupid people posting chit all over the boards. Talk of raising the min wage is nothing more than vote buying, just like deductions and welfare.

Not nearly as tired as I get with postings from economic illiterates such as you. One ad hominum deserves another.

If raising min wage was the answer, why not make it 40 buck an hour?

Nice try at a straw man argument. Deduct ten points.

Because you would have a collapse in the economy

And your evidence for this is? Remember you are trying to refute an argument that cited actual economic research. Either get a source or an economics degree before assuming you speak as an expert.

.... If min wage fixed poverty, why are there so many mother fuckers living in poverty?

More or less, the retarded idea of a min wage has absolutely failed. So by all means, keep doing more of something that fails to ever live up to a single benchmark ever set at any period in time since it's conception.

Actually I've seen a good amount of research that indicates that the minimum wage is responsible for a good part of economic growth in this country over the last sixty years, and a large factor in reducing poverty. I'd dig it up for you, but since you don't respond to evidence and live in a fact free and logic ffee zone, it's not worth the effort.

Ignorance can be cured. Dumb is forever.

 

[oldfart]

The classical economic position that says raising the min. wage increases unemployment works ceteris paribus - ie, all else being held constant. But in the real world, all other things are not held constant. Increasing the min. wage may or may not have a significant impact on employment; it depends on a host of other variables as well that may or may not have an even larger effect on employment.

Most of the labor economics literature finds that minimum wage effects on unemployment are second tier. The fear of some economists is that increases in the minimum wage put pressure on wages a buck or two higher than the minimum wage, and can give rise to wage inflation. Paradoxically, in the present circumstances this would be a good thing. Increasing incomes of everyone working at say less than fifteen dollars per hour would go overwhelmingly to increased demand, which is at the root of our growth problem right now. Restoring the share of national going to wages wouldn't be bad either.

There would be some wage cost inflation, but I don't see that as offsetting the positive effects. At the bottom, it's all about the effort to redistribute power and income.

 

[Blooper]

A Progressive scheme to keep people unemployed, it keeps the unemployable, unemployed because businesses won't take a chances.

Yet the studies in the OP showed that unemployment goes down. Some scheme.

 

[Blooper]

I get so tired of stupid people posting chit all over the boards. Talk of raising the min wage is nothing more than vote buying, just like deductions and welfare.

Just like tax cuts and deregulation? Or voter ID laws and entitlement cuts, which appeal to racism and a near criminal lack of social generosity?

If raising min wage was the answer, why not make it 40 buck an hour? Because you would have a collapse in the economy.... If min wage fixed poverty, why are there so many mother fuckers living in poverty?

Why hasn't deregulation and tax cuts fixed the economy? Oh, because there's not been enough.

So my response to your question is the same.

Actually, the history of Progressives wanting to have minimum wage laws is steeped in eugenics and racism.

 

[EdwardBaiamonte]

Why hasn't deregulation and tax cuts fixed the economy?

dear, some guy named Obama has been president for 4 years. He is for huge tax increases and huge new regulations and is implimenting such.

As a liberal, do you even know what planet you are on??

See why we say slow?? IS any other conclusion possible?

 

[JimmieD]

Most of the labor economics literature finds that minimum wage effects on unemployment are second tier.

I don't know what "most" or "second tier" mean. Do you have a paper I could look at?

Like anything else in economics, things are going to depend on the assumptions of the model, the variables chosen, the model chosen, the time frame of the study, and the sample size used. Additionally, I think that macro relationships change, variables fluctuate, variances change, preferences change, elastacities change, etc... There are probably times when min. wage effects have a big impact on employment and times when they don't.

Increasing incomes of everyone working at say less than fifteen dollars per hour would go overwhelmingly to increased demand, which is at the root of our growth problem right now.

Maybe it would; I have no idea how you arrived at such a certain conclusion though. I could come up with a theory that says that's the effect we should see if min. wage is increased, but I could also come up with a theory that says the opposite. I have no idea what will actually show up in the data though, and I don't think anyone else does either.

 

[EdwardBaiamonte]

Most of the labor economics literature finds that minimum wage effects on unemployment are second tier.

I don't know what "most" or "second tier" mean. Do you have a paper I could look at?

Like anything else in economics, things are going to depend on the assumptions of the model, the variables chosen, the model chosen, the time frame of the study, and the sample size used. Additionally, I think that macro relationships change, variables fluctuate, variances change, preferences change, elastacities change, etc... There are probably times when min. wage effects have a big impact on employment and times when they don't.

Increasing incomes of everyone working at say less than fifteen dollars per hour would go overwhelmingly to increased demand, which is at the root of our growth problem right now.

Maybe it would; I have no idea how you arrived at such a certain conclusion though. I could come up with a theory that says that's the effect we should see if min. wage is increased, but I could also come up with a theory that says the opposite. I have no idea what will actually show up in the data though, and I don't think anyone else does either.

the law of supply and demand says that as price of labor or anything goes up demand goes down!! Its 99.9% accurate. Ever wonder why a VW sells more than Rolls Royce???

 

[JimmieD]

the law of supply and demand says that as price of labor or anything goes up demand goes down!!

....ceteris paribus. People forget that part of economics. Yes, ceteris paribus, if the price of labor increases, demand will decrease. In the non-theoretical world though, other things do not stay constant.

 

[EdwardBaiamonte]

the law of supply and demand says that as price of labor or anything goes up demand goes down!!

....ceteris paribus. People forget that part of economics. Yes, ceteris paribus, if the price of labor increases, demand will decrease. In the non-theoretical world though, other things do not stay constant.

dear, over time things tend to revert to the norm so its best to make policy with that in mind. Sorry!!

Don't forget USMB is where liberals coome to die!! Look around.

 

[Blooper]

It's a pretty basic concept. You redistribute wealth downward and it acts as economic stimulus. Those with less need won't be spending extra income, but those whose lives will be greatly improved with a small increase will circulate it into the economy.

 

[EdwardBaiamonte]

It's a pretty basic concept. You redistribute wealth downward and it acts as economic stimulus.

too stupid!! if true we'd all know it and recessions and depressions would be a thing of the past

Those with less need won't be spending extra income,

too stupid by 1000%. they won't spend so they will save and in Econ 101 S=I( savings equals investment) the economy grows and creates only with investment. Think!!!

but those whose lives will be greatly improved with a small increase will circulate it into the economy.

until the artificial spending stops and the recession/depression stimulative bubble bursts.

Why are you here if you have never been to college???