As our economy adds more and more low wage service industry jobs, it would make sense to protect the American living standard by adjusting the minimum wage. Since consumer demand is the driving force in job creation, giving consumers money to spend is the only way to stimulate the economy.
Funny thing though, that whole concept is not part of any Republican plan to create jobs.
From Wisconsin Jobs Now, via Economic Policy Institute:
Just this week the Economic Policy Institute released a report on the minimum wage and what effects raising the wage would have for workers and for the economy. Coincidentally, on March 29, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) introduced the Rebuild America Act, which includes an increase in the federal minimum wage from the current $7.25 (where it has been for three years) to $9.80.
Wisconsin defines a living wage as “sufficient to enable the employee receiving the compensation to maintain himself or herself under conditions consistent with his or her welfare,” and defines welfare as “reasonable comfort, reasonable physical well-being, decency, and moral well-being.”WKOW had this:
In order to have reasonable comfort it would suggest that an individual should be able to house, feed, and upkeep their family’s health – which is becoming increasingly impossible given the diminishing purchasing power of $7.25 (it’s fallen to $6.77 since put in place 3 years ago).
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