When my parents came to America in 1961, (legally I might add) my dad was subject to and received the then minimum wage of $1 an hour. After deductions, I think his take home pay was about $35 weekly.
On those wages we paid for an apartment, bought clothes and food and went to the movies regularly; we were able to also buy a used 1955 Pontiac to visit the beach on the weekends and to go fishing.
No doubt minimum wages are tough on those receiving them, but statistically they typically no longer apply to the head of a family and are likely to be for retired part timers looking for something to do, teenagers in their first jobs and illegal or semi-legal alien workers. Also many workers that have become school dropouts and have not created a pathway to better work are in this category.
Many states already mandate higher hourly wages.
Business never really considers the minimum wage as something to use as a basis for wage rates. It pays a wage sufficient to attract the workers that are needed, and it is not unusual for businesses to pay and advertise much higher wages for even menial jobs when there is a need to provide the service and retain good employees.
So, what is the point of a minimum wage ?
The last time it was increased, 41% of employers cut hours worked for these employees, and 28% stopped adding workers, while 24% reduced the workforce of these workers.
In these economic times, does it make sense to now fire 24% of the workers who are now employed in these jobs?
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