Calls to establish a regionally adjusted federal minimum wage are dangerously misguided. There is not a county in the U.S. where an individual working full time could achieve a secure standard of living earning less than $15 per hour. epi.org/blog/calls-to-…
Raising the minimum wage to its historical peak in 1968 had no adverse effects on employment, according to new evidence. Establishing a strong national floor is easier now than in 1968 because wage differences across states have declined substantially. academic.oup.com/qje/article-ab…
A regional minimum wage would serve to normalize or tolerate existing low-wage conditions in particular regions, industries, or occupations that are largely the result of historical racism and sexism.
When the first federal minimum wage was being debated in the 1930s, Southern congressmen insisted that the wage should be adjusted by region, concerned that the federal standard would upset the white supremacist plantation system that dominated the South’s economy.
Adjusting the federal minimum wage based upon regional wage differences would serve to cement racial & gender wage disparities. And given the evidence that higher minimum wages do not have adverse employment impacts, there is no reason why we should not enact a $15 minimum wage.
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