Black Girl Wat

Name one time anywhere in the world when that has ever happened - when local consumer prices went up as a direct consequence of a minimum wage hike. Just one time.

Following the proportionately large minimum wage increases in the late 1960s and early 1970s (graph on the right) compares to the highest inflation rate in the 1970s. Of course there are many factors relating to inflation, but one should not dismiss this comparison out of hand. The numbers are the numbers.

Yeah, funny story about that - and this is true! Nixon blamed this inflation on wage hikes particularly in the steel industry, so ordered a wage freeze for steel workers. Inflation did not even slow down - it continued anyway at the same rate. The wage hikes weren't to blame.

The general consensus now is that inflation of the early 70's was primarily driven by the oil shortage crisis from OPEC countries. Think of everything in modern society that is made is plastic - an oil shortage will raise the price of EVERYTHING.

I'm no economist, but i'm pretty sure that the financial burden of paying higher wages is passed on to or shared with the consumer. That's like econ 1 stuff.

Macroeconomics, not microeconomics: if everyone in the market is paying the same wage costs, but market demand has increased because people have more spending money because their take-home pay has gone up, then everyone competes for the new market share by minimizing or eliminating any increases to retail costs.The increase in business makes up for the increase in wage expenses.

Know how you can settle this? Cite one example of what you're saying to disprove what I'm saying. "Ah, but remember in Holland 1954, the minimum wage went up by 45% and inflation spiked up five points for the next seven years" - just like that, except true!

I don't see a problem with $10.10.

I'd compromise for $12, because then at least it will have kept up with inflation since 1969 - anything less than that, and the American worker has in effect taken a pay cut since then and I don't see why that has to be the case.

I'm also willing to stagger the hike over time, if your concern is the size of the jump in one go - but if we're going to do that, we HAVE to peg the minimum wage to something solid once it gets to where it should be, so that we never have to face this situation again. If we peg it to inflation, that would be great; I say peg it to worker productivity, but I know that's a difficult sell for a lot of people.

Has there ever been a time in the U.S. where the minimum wage has been increased by as much as what is being called for?

Yeah, costs will go up, but not of consumer goods, but of costs related to the ineffectiveness of the market and increased unemployment.