I disagree about the priced out of the job. There are limits that will cause people to be priced out of jobs but $15 an hour isn't it. What minimum wage is intended to do is to protect the people that don't have the power to negotiate. Yes there are negative consequences for raising the min wage but I think there are consequences that are far worse for leaving it where it is or lowering it. Such as the fact that many min wadge jobs are subsidized by the government in the form of social welfare such as food stamps. This is a major problem for me. I believe that their should be a social safety net, but I also believe that it shouldn't be needed by people working 40hrs a week minimum wage. If you think that that should be required for them to live, then we must part ways at this point for we will never agree. Because while there are negative consequences for raising it, I think the current state of affairs is worse.
There are limits that will cause people to be priced out of jobs but $15 an hour isn't it.
Of course it is. If a kid has no skills whatsoever, he's not worth $15 per hour. But with the min. wage set at $15, he can't be hired for less, so that he could gain experience, so that he could be worth $15 later on. That's how he gets priced out of a job.
Yes there are negative consequences for raising the min wage but I think there are consequences that are far worse for leaving it where it is or lowering it
When you say that, you might be ignoring what I just described. The consequences for lowering it would be that more young, unskilled people would get hired.
Such as the fact that many min wadge jobs are subsidized by the government in the form of social welfare such as food stamps. This is a major problem for me.
I guess that's one way to think about it. But bear in mind that welfare is money that's taken from some people, and given to others. Doing that is detrimental to the economy, because the money could be used productively by those it's taken from, and high taxes demotivate doing business. Imagine a 100% tax rate - no one would want to do anything, because we'd all be outright slaves.
So, a welfare system just makes the economy worse. In fact, any government intervention makes the economy worse.
I believe that their should be a social safety net, but I also believe that it shouldn't be needed by people working 40hrs a week minimum wage.
The thing is, an economy just is the way it is, at a certain time, in a certain place. For example, right now there's hyperinflation in Venezuela. Lots of people are suffering because of that, and that's not cool, but that can't be helped either because that's what the government has caused with its ever-increasing interventions. That's just the way their economy is right now. There would be no point in someone declaring that he wants the Bolivar to be worth more, and suggesting that the government make a law that says it must be worth more.
It's important to realize that problems caused by government intervention can't be fixed with more intervention. People are having a hard time getting by on minimum wage, but that's the government's fault. There are lots of factors that go into that situation, but the root cause is govts forcing us to use their fiat currencies instead of whatever sound money would otherwise be chosen. Then there's fractional reserve banking that results in a need for perpetual "growth", and the Fed and other central banks blowing bubbles and inflating the money supply, and so on. It's all connected.
So when $7.25/h isn't enough to get by, it's not because the employers are being too greedy. It's just that the government has looted people so much that the economy is bad.
I disagree about the priced out of the job. There are limits that will cause people to be priced out of jobs but $15 an hour isn't it. What minimum wage is intended to do is to protect the people that don't have the power to negotiate. Yes there are negative consequences for raising the min wage but I think there are consequences that are far worse for leaving it where it is or lowering it. Such as the fact that many min wadge jobs are subsidized by the government in the form of social welfare such as food stamps. This is a major problem for me. I believe that their should be a social safety net, but I also believe that it shouldn't be needed by people working 40hrs a week minimum wage. If you think that that should be required for them to live, then we must part ways at this point for we will never agree. Because while there are negative consequences for raising it, I think the current state of affairs is worse.
Of course it is. If a kid has no skills whatsoever, he's not worth $15 per hour. But with the min. wage set at $15, he can't be hired for less, so that he could gain experience, so that he could be worth $15 later on. That's how he gets priced out of a job.
When you say that, you might be ignoring what I just described. The consequences for lowering it would be that more young, unskilled people would get hired.
I guess that's one way to think about it. But bear in mind that welfare is money that's taken from some people, and given to others. Doing that is detrimental to the economy, because the money could be used productively by those it's taken from, and high taxes demotivate doing business. Imagine a 100% tax rate - no one would want to do anything, because we'd all be outright slaves.
So, a welfare system just makes the economy worse. In fact, any government intervention makes the economy worse.
The thing is, an economy just is the way it is, at a certain time, in a certain place. For example, right now there's hyperinflation in Venezuela. Lots of people are suffering because of that, and that's not cool, but that can't be helped either because that's what the government has caused with its ever-increasing interventions. That's just the way their economy is right now. There would be no point in someone declaring that he wants the Bolivar to be worth more, and suggesting that the government make a law that says it must be worth more.
It's important to realize that problems caused by government intervention can't be fixed with more intervention. People are having a hard time getting by on minimum wage, but that's the government's fault. There are lots of factors that go into that situation, but the root cause is govts forcing us to use their fiat currencies instead of whatever sound money would otherwise be chosen. Then there's fractional reserve banking that results in a need for perpetual "growth", and the Fed and other central banks blowing bubbles and inflating the money supply, and so on. It's all connected.
So when $7.25/h isn't enough to get by, it's not because the employers are being too greedy. It's just that the government has looted people so much that the economy is bad.