re: #175 Aceofwhat?

Very tough question, given that minimum wage increases can be statistically tied to job losses at the lowest tier.

Generally speaking, 5 jobs available at $5/hr turn into 3 or 4 jobs if the owner is forced to pay $8/hr.

There is no economic consensus on the truth of that. Or much else, for that matter.

I prefer to compare the situation in countries without minimum wage laws, or with very weak ones, with countries with minimum wage laws.

In general, I think that you’ll find that those 5 jobs at $5/hr create workers who need more government support in one way or another. We have a very, very, very weak safety net in the US compared to other first-world countries, but it still exists.

Even public transportation, for example, requires higher subsidies the lower the wages are in the area.