Friday, July 31, 2009

John Stossel on the Minimum Wage

One of the most obvious ways that politicians demonstrate their economic ignorance is with minimum wage laws. No politician that supports minimum wage laws should ever be re-elected. Minimum wage laws are worst than doing nothing because they actively hurt the very people that they are designed to help.

Minimum wage laws artificially raise the costs of labor for low skill and entry level jobs. They reduce business profits (affecting all other employees and shareholders), raise prices and/or reduce employment opportunities to those that most need starter jobs.

This fits right in with the fallacy of a "living wage". A living wage is whatever you can live on. If you are single and living with mom and dad, what you can live on is much less than if you have a wife, three kids and a mortgage. Minimum wage jobs were NEVER meant to support a family. They are meant as starter jobs / supplemental income jobs. If you are unable to get more than a minimum wage job, (listen carefully here) WHAT ARE YOU DOING HAVING A FAMILY THAT YOU CAN NOT AFFORD? You have the life you can afford not the money you want to support your life. Too many people now think it works the other way around. "I have a big life/family so I deserve a lot of money." Sorry but no, you get the money you deserve and structure your life to match. Feel free to have 1 child IF you can affort to take care of a child. Feel free to have 8 kids IF you can affort to take care of 8 kids. See how simple it really is if you only use some (not so) common sense?

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