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Punished By Minimum Wage
IBD Editorials ^ | May 10, 2011 | WALTER WILLIAMS

Posted on 05/10/2011 5:11:29 PM PDT by Kaslin

As if more proof were needed about the minimum wage's devastating effects, yet another study has reached the same conclusion.

Last week, two labor economists, Professors William Even (Miami University of Ohio) and David Macpherson (Trinity University), released a study for the Washington, D.C.-based Employment Policies Institute titled "Unequal Harm: Racial Disparities in the Employment Consequences of Minimum Wage Increases."

During the peak of what has been dubbed the Great Recession, the unemployment rate for young adults (16 to 24 years of age) as a whole rose to above 27%. The unemployment rate for black young adults was almost 50%, but for young black males, it was 55%.

Even and Macpherson say that it would be easy to say this tragedy is an unfortunate byproduct of the recession, but if you said so, you'd be wrong.

Their study demonstrates that increases in the minimum wage at both the state and federal level are partially to blame for the crisis in employment for minority young adults.

Their study focuses on 16-to-24-year-old male high school dropouts, understandably a relatively inexperienced group of labor market participants.

Since minimum wage laws discriminate against the employment of the least-skilled worker, it shouldn't be surprising to find 16-to-24-year-old male high school dropouts its primary victims.

Among the white males, the authors find that "each 10% increase in a state or federal minimum wage has decreased employment by 2.5%; for Hispanic males, the figure is 1.2%

(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Editorial
KEYWORDS: minimumwage

1 posted on 05/10/2011 5:11:29 PM PDT by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin

Make it illegal NOT to have a HS diploma!


2 posted on 05/10/2011 5:20:44 PM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Kaslin

bkmk


3 posted on 05/10/2011 5:33:14 PM PDT by Sergio (An object at rest cannot be stopped! - The Evil Midnight Bomber What Bombs at Midnight)
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To: Elsie

That is ridiculous. I have a HS Diploma, it didn’t help me one bit.


4 posted on 05/10/2011 5:35:07 PM PDT by Kaslin (Acronym for OBAMA: One Big Ass Mistake America)
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To: Kaslin; Elsie
I have a HS Diploma, it didn’t help me one bit.

We can tell. ;-))

On a lighter note, paying people what they are worth sho' nuf gonna knock a lot of people off their pedestals.

5 posted on 05/10/2011 5:39:48 PM PDT by bigheadfred (Beat me, Bite me...Make Me Write Bad Checks)
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To: bigheadfred

No, my point was you only can and must encourage kids to stay in school and get their HS diploma. But you should not make it against the law if they don’t


6 posted on 05/10/2011 5:52:41 PM PDT by Kaslin (Acronym for OBAMA: One Big Ass Mistake America)
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To: Kaslin

Work experience is so important and starting young just opens the door. It doesn’t matter if you have a 4.0, you will get so much more consideration if you have already held down a job.

My granddaughter just got hired by the school district for the summer out of over 50 kids who applied. Her parents have also told her that she needs to work through college even if she gets scholarships.

It is sad that many young people won’t have that leg up the ladder because an idiot teenager is not usually worth 8 bucks an hour but if they are they will work their way up quickly.


7 posted on 05/10/2011 6:05:12 PM PDT by tiki
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To: Kaslin

When has minimum wage been a support system for mature adults and thier families?


8 posted on 05/10/2011 6:06:21 PM PDT by ronnie raygun (V)
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To: Kaslin

Yeah, and maybe instead of k-12 they should start more vo-tech types of training.

And if they start paying people for their worth, “wage DOI- wage dependent on incompetence” there be some poli’s out there owe me some money. Make that A LOT of money.


9 posted on 05/10/2011 6:06:45 PM PDT by bigheadfred (Beat me, Bite me...Make Me Write Bad Checks)
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To: Elsie

Make it illegal NOT to have a HS diploma!

If you make having HS diploma a law it will be worth nothing. Never mind. HS diploma is already worth nothing. Soon a bachelor degree will be worth nothing.


10 posted on 05/10/2011 6:09:35 PM PDT by steveab (When was the last time someone tried to sell you a CO2 induced climate control system for your home?)
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To: bigheadfred

I agree completely.


11 posted on 05/10/2011 6:18:28 PM PDT by Kaslin (Acronym for OBAMA: One Big Ass Mistake America)
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To: Kaslin
The Federal minimum wage laws should be dumped. These laws are now reversing what they were originally written to do. The Democrats use minimum wage as crutch to stay in office as their constituents can't dissect the cause and effect logic that proves the legislation as disruptive.
12 posted on 05/10/2011 6:27:52 PM PDT by oyez (The difference in genius and stupidity is that genius has limits.)
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To: Kaslin
Walter nails it. It is so crystal clear and simple. Minimum wage laws in this country are stifling not only prosperity, but the development of a good worth ethic in people.

The best way to sabotage chances for upward mobility of a youngster from a single-parent household, who resides in a violent slum and has attended poor-quality schools is to make it unprofitable for any employer to hire him.

The way to accomplish that is to mandate an employer to pay such a person a wage that exceeds his skill level.

Imagine that a worker's skill level is such that he can only contribute $5 worth of value per hour to the employer's output, but the employer must pay him a minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, plus mandated fringes such as Social Security, unemployment compensation and health insurance.

So it's not really $7.25 an hour after fringes -- it's more like $10 or even $12. Minimum wage laws are destructive and stupid. Yet another example of how our government now interferes directly with individual prosperity. Remember too that it is now poising to interfere directly with every American's access to medical care. Government is the problem.

13 posted on 05/10/2011 6:55:55 PM PDT by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent)
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To: Kaslin

“The unemployment rate for black young adults was almost 50%, but for young black males, it was 55%.”

Not to worry.....they’re on food stamps. They’ll keep up their strength, so as to be able to vote the mooselimb back into office.


14 posted on 05/10/2011 7:37:39 PM PDT by Mortrey (Impeach President Soros)
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To: ronnie raygun

Mature?


15 posted on 05/11/2011 4:15:11 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: bigheadfred

HUNGER is a GREAT motivator!

No more food stamps; but a ‘volunteer’ run kitchen on every block!


16 posted on 05/11/2011 4:18:04 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Elsie

Maybe someone should dig a big ditch from somewhere along the Mississippi River down to Texas.

Ease some flooding up around Tennessee and help with the drought in Texas.


17 posted on 05/11/2011 4:44:24 AM PDT by bigheadfred (Beat me, Bite me...Make Me Write Bad Checks)
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To: Finny
the insanity of crushin the 'lil guy' by forcing employers to cut personnel is one end...the fact that anyone making above min wage gets and effective reduction in pay is the other...

except of course usions that peg their prevailing wage to the fed min...

18 posted on 05/11/2011 6:04:12 AM PDT by Gilbo_3 (Gov is not reason; not eloquent; its force.Like fire,a dangerous servant & master. George Washington)
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To: tiki

I’ve now witnessed parents donating to non-profits and charities with the condition that their child be hired for an internship. The parent is in essence paying the child’s salary, but the non-profit is the employer - and the pay off is a “job” that goes on the resume.


19 posted on 05/11/2011 8:09:40 AM PDT by tbw2
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