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Wage hike a publicity stunt
March 2017 · Michael Saltsman · Detroit News
Shortly after announcing his candidacy for mayor of Detroit, state Sen. Coleman A. Young II proposed raising Michigan’s minimum wage to $15 an hour. It appears the state senator has the same careless touch in crafting economic policy that his father often had in running the city. The younger Young launched his campaign with familiar rhetoric, contrasting the new wave of prosperity downtown with the continuing poverty… -
Minimum wage boost would damage economy
March 2017 · Michael Saltsman · Quad City Times
Gov. Terry Branstad is half-right on the minimum wage. Last month, the governor threw his support behind “a modest increase” in the Iowa’s minimum wage as well as a measure that would restrict municipalities from increasing their minimum wage above the state level. He’s wrong on the first point but right on the second. A review of the best minimum wage research, published by the Federal Reserve… -
What a Gig Harbor toy store can tell us about Washington’s minimum wage
February 2017 · Jordan Bruneau · Tacoma Tribune
The early evidence of Washington state’s minimum wage increase is in, and the results so far are not promising. In January the state’s starter wage increased to $11 on its way to $13.50 by 2020. Since then, numerous small businesses in the state have been forced to cut job opportunities or close their doors in response. O’Doherty’s Pub in Spokane is closing, with the owner citing the… -
Proposal to hike Nevada’s minimum wage will erode state’s entry-level job market
February 2017 · Michael Saltsman · Las Vegas Review Journal
This year, Nevada’s small business and entry-level employees probably won’t hit the jackpot. The Legislature is considering minimum wage legislation proposed by state Sen. Kelvin Atkinson, a Las Vegas Democrat, that would raise the state’s minimum wage to $11 for all businesses and $12 for businesses that do not offer health insurance. This 33 percent minimum wage hike will raise new barriers to the job market for… -
‘Fake News’ Fools Critics Of Trump’s Labor Nominee
January 2017 · Michael Saltsman · Forbes
The column headline was sensational: Donald Trump’s nominee for Labor Secretary, CKE Restaurants CEO Andrew Puzder, “sticks taxpayers with the cost” of supporting his employees and the employees of his franchisees. As proof, the author–Los Angeles Times labor columnist Michael Hiltzik–pointed readers to a policy paper from the union-backed National Employment Law Project (NELP), which claimed that Puzder’s restaurant company receives an estimated annual taxpayer subsidy of $247 million. The NELP… -
Montgomery County should back away from a higher minimum wage
January 2017 · Michael Saltsman · The Washington Post
If the Montgomery County Council needs a compelling reason to hit pause on its plans to pursue a $15 minimum wage, it should look to the states and localities that already took the plunge on unprecedented wage hikes. Start with the District. In 2014, the District passed legislation to raise its starter wage to $11.50 by 2016; Montgomery and Prince George’s counties followed suit and enacted similar…