I have often said that there are many complicated issues in public policy, but the concept of a minimum wage is not one of them. It is a “feel good” impulse that makes no sense for any of its intended purposes and, in fact, is harmful to those it is designed to help, the young and entry level aspirants at the margins on the lowest rung on the employment scale who will be the first to suffer. Further damage is done in the resulting escalation in union labor contracts that have wage increases tied to the legal minimum wage. All the evidence is clear that the victims are the young, primarily minority, least educated and unskilled workers who will be priced out of the labor market. Their new wage will not be the $9 per hour recommended by President Obama, it will be zero. Families in poverty need someone who works, so any policy that makes it more difficult to get a job is not productive. This is a no-brainer. Minimum wage policy is typical liberal “good intentions” nonsense borne out of pure ideology and economic illiteracy.
