The minimum wage is a cruel joke

By Tom Quiner

The minimum wage issue is an easy one.
If you force an employer to pay someone more than they’re worth, that employer will hire fewer people. Worse, he may let employees go.
The minimum wage is a cruel piece of legislation because it deprives young workers of entry-level employment opportunities. Evidence at the state level supports my claim.
There is a direct correlation between a higher minimum wage and higher unemployment rates. Back in May of 2009, the five states with the lowest unemployment rates had a state MW lower than the federal wage.
But five of the six states with the highest unemployment rates had a higher MW wage than the feds, suggesting there is a correlation between artificially high wages and high unemployment.
I’m not sure that the meme at the top of this article is accurate. But it points out that low skill jobs may not be worth ten or fifteen bucks per hour.
Let the marketplace decide, not the busy bodies in Washington.