Originally Posted By: tonyc
With respect to this:

Originally Posted By: TigerJimmy

For example, if we imagine something like 2-4% of workers are actually employed at minimum wage, and then we say that raising it has a 1% increase of unemployment for those workers, then this is only .02-.04% of the employment total. It's quite possible that measurement methods won't show this affect and conclude there is "no correlation", when in fact there is one


I grant you that this is possible, so let's see some real numbers, not hand-waving. The fact that something could happen in the world of made-up numbers doesn't win against the actual results of actual states that have actually increased their minimum wage.

The burden of proof, therefore, is on those like you and Tim who insist, despite our real-world experience, that unemployment will skyrocket if we raise the minimum wage. The fact that the best you can do is cite American Samoa as an example speaks volumes.


I have never asserted that unemployment will skyrocket. That's a function of how big the increase is and the number of workers/employers actually affected by it. A relatively small portion of workers are actually minimum-wage workers. Saying this you behave in a way you complain about in others -- by putting words in their mouths. I do reject that we can conclude that wage laws do not affect unemployment rates at all. That defies logic.