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Businesses Facing a Minimum-Wage Squeeze Will Cut Back
January 2013 · Michael Saltsman · Plain Dealer
A recent editorial in The Plain Dealer praises the timing on the state’s Jan. 1 minimum-wage hike (“A wage boost in Ohio,” Thursday). But for the state’s low-margin businesses, like restaurants and grocery stores, there’s no such thing as a good time for an increase in labor costs. For an employer with 20 employees earning the minimum, the recent wage hike translates to more than $6,200 a… -
Minimum wage hike hurts Missouri’s teens
November 2012 · Michael Saltsman · St. Louis Post-Dispatch
With Missouri’s recently announced minimum wage hike, it becomes the 10th state to set a wage higher than the federal level for 2013 (“Missouri minimum wage will rise 10 cents to $7.35,” Nov. 13). That’s bad news for Missouri’s teens, who already face the ninth highest unemployment rate in the country and will now have even more trouble finding job opportunities. It’s not difficult to understand why:… -
LETTER: Study faulty on family income
August 2012 · Michael Saltsman · Superior Telegram
To the Telegram: A recent article on the Superior Telegram website cites a report from the labor-backed Economic Policy Institute, which gives the impression that minimum wage earners are mostly breadwinners “trying to support families” (“Could $9.80 be the new minimum wage?” August 20). The facts show otherwise. According to Census Bureau data, the average family income of a beneficiary of a $9.80 minimum wage in Wisconsin… -
Wages vs. jobs
July 2012 · Michael Saltsman · The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Inquirer, editorializing in favor of raising New Jersey’s minimum wage, cited a study by the labor-backed Economic Policy Institute that promised job creation following a wage hike (“Still time to raise N.J. minimum wage,” Monday). Here in the real world, the actual effects of such a mandate are quite the opposite. Businesses that hire entry-level employees and pay them minimum wage — think restaurants or grocery… -
What Are the Effects of Raising the Minimum Wage?
April 2012 · Michael Saltsman · The New York Times
Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, has introduced a bill to raise the federal minimum wage to $9.80 from its present level of $7.25. Legislators in a number of states — including Connecticut, New Jersey and New York — are also considering increases. An election-year promise of higher wages and less poverty makes a compelling campaign platform. Unfortunately, it’s an empty pledge: Research indicates that, on the… -
Senate fix for food servers a bill employers can like, too
March 2012 · Michael Saltsman · Palm Beach Post
By 2004 constitutional amendment, Florida raised and indexed the state’s minimum wage to rise with inflation. It also limited the tip income that service employers could claim as compensation. It sounds like a technicality, but labor costs for non-fast-food restaurants nearly doubled in five years as a result. To fix this, a state Senate bill would have guaranteed food servers an hourly wage 30 percent higher than…