Minimum Wage

Betsey Stevenson, an associate professor of public policy at the University of Michigan, served as chief economist of the Labor Department from 2010 to 2011. In February's State of the Union address , President Obama provoked conservatives' ire by proposing an increase in the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $9. Especially in a struggling economy, wouldn't a minimum-wage boost increase unemployment and hurt small businesses? And would it even help the working poor? Let's unpack some of the assumptions about the minimum wage that have...

While direct-care workers feature prominently in the new report on low-wage jobs funded with taxpayer dollars [" On taxpayers' dime, at $12 an hour ," Economy & Business, May 8], the study failed to account for the industry that employs most publicly funded personal-care aides: services for the elderly and persons with disabilities. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), this industry includes 350,000 personal-care aides, who help older adults and persons with disabilities live independently.

Want more proof that the boundaries of debate in American politics are absurdly narrow and unequal to our challenges? Then ask yourself why an overdue, common-sense increase in the minimum wage is not on the agenda of either the president or the "new and improved" Republican party. While Eric Cantor feebly tries to rebrand the GOP this week, and President Obama maneuvers to sidestep the sequester he signed into law in 2011, millions of America's working poor continue to languish.

DOVER, Del. — A Senate proposal to raise Delaware's minimum wage by a dollar over the next two years has been tabled by a House committee. The committee voted 7-3 Wednesday to table the measure, which passed the Senate on 12-9 party-line vote, with only one Democrat voting against it. The proposal would raise the current hourly wage from $7.25 to $7.75 on Jan. 1, 2014, and to $8.25 on Jan. 1, 2015. Supporters of the measure have said the higher wage will stimulate the economy and help low-wage...

Regarding the Feb. 14 news story "With N.C. factory backdrop, Obama outlines plan to shore up manufacturing" : I'm puzzled by House Speaker John Boehner's position that raising the minimum wage would result in lost jobs. If that were true, then the Ohio Republican should advocate decreasing the minimum wage. Surely by his own logic, a lower minimum wage would allow employers to hire more workers. David Elliott Bell , Reston

Liberal firebrand Paul Krugman backs President Obama's plan for a phased-in 25 percent increase in the minimum wage, to $9 per hour. But he is still economist enough to note that raising it to $20 "would create a lot of problems" — among them, presumably, pricing low-skilled workers out of the job market. There must be some level beyond which the minimum wage does more harm than good, and no one really denies it. Studies showing that higher minimum wages have little or no impact on employment generally refer to modest increments,...

On Tuesday, Maryland lawmakers and activists launched "Raise Maryland," an effort to raise the state's minumum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10 per hour by 2015. "We like to say we live in the wealthiest state in America," said Del. Aisha Braveboy (D-Prince George's County) "Well, how much do you think it costs to live in the wealthiest state in America?" More than the minimum wage earner can afford, she said. "When the minimum wage was at its great est value it was 45 years ago in 1968," said Sen. Robert...

Regarding Matt Miller's Feb. 9 op-ed column, " 30 million workers need a raise ": Mr. Miller noted that raising wages in industries such as home health-care or child care cannot lead to jobs being automated. The point is literally true but substantively empty. While home health-care aides would not be replaced by machines, that does not mean that there would be no ill effects on these intended beneficiaries of a minimum-wage increase. Higher wages mean higher costs, which mean fewer job opportunities.

The Feb. 3 editorial " Pay pal ," about Mitt Romney's minimum-wage proposal, contained a serious flaw. It said, "If government is going to set that price [of low-skill, entry-level labor], it ought to do so in a rational, consistent manner. " The problem is that there is no such thing as a "rational" price of labor, or anything else for that matter, if by price you mean value. The true value of anything is the price at which a buyer will voluntarily buy it and a seller will voluntarily sell it. At any other price, the...

The last time Congress passed a minimum wage increase, Wal-Mart's chief executive at the time seemed to lead the way. "The U.S. minimum wage of $5.15 an hour has not been raised in nearly a decade, and we believe it is out of date with the times," then-chief executive H. Lee Scott Jr. said in a 2005 speech to company executives that connected low wages to troubles for the retailer's patrons. "Our customers simply don't have the money to buy basic necessities between paychecks.

D.C. Council candidate Patrick Mara (R) opposes expanding the city's sick-leave law to include restaurant tip workers as well as an increase in the minimum wage, setting up a sharp difference between him and the five other candidates in the at-large race. Mara, widely viewed as a leading contender in the April 23 election , staked out his position during a candidates forum Tuesday night at the Washington DC Jewish Community Center. In 2008, the D.C. Council approved a law ...

Betsey Stevenson, an associate professor of public policy at the University of Michigan, served as chief economist of the Labor Department from 2010 to 2011. In February's State of the Union address , President Obama provoked conservatives' ire by proposing an increase in the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $9. Especially in a struggling economy, wouldn't a minimum-wage boost increase unemployment and hurt small businesses? And would it even help the working poor? Let's unpack some of the assumptions about the minimum...

D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson and opponents of his proposal to require a higher minimum wage at some large stores sparred Wednesday at a hearing that drew an overflow crowd and unleashed highly charged emotions. "Just when the District is truly gaining traction to attract a new major retail outlets for redevelopment, the council is holding a hearing on legislation that would provide further proof to business that the District is not interested in changing its...

Coming up today in the D.C. area: Maryland politics: Guns , transportation funding and minimum wage bills are on the agenda for state lawmakers today. Cherry blossoms: The 3 1/2-week-long Cherry Blossom Festival begins today. MWAA: The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority will hold a full day of meetings , starting at 8:30 a.m. Spring starts: Spring kicks off with sun, and temperatures near 50, but cold and windy conditions will return.

Republicans slammed President Obama's selection of Thomas E. Perez as the next labor secretary Monday, painting the assistant U.S. attorney general as a polarizing and radical figure and suggesting that they will seek to hold up his nomination. Perez, 51, a former Montgomery County Council member who has overseen the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department since 2009, is expected to help Obama pursue an ambitious agenda that includes expanding voting rights,...

Tyrrell Brown is constantly thinking about money. "All the time, every day, right now," said Brown, 24. He makes minimum wage as a cashier at the Family Dollar in Forest Heights, in Prince George's County near the District boundary. He pulls out his phone for an accounting of his weekly take-home pay: $176.63, $187.95, $252.42, $229.99. It's a reminder of all he has done, and can't yet do, on $7.25 an hour. "I'm thankful," Brown said. "Without the job, I could see myself not being the father I am. " But...

The federal minimum wage is now $7.25 cents an hour, about $15,080 for a full time, year round worker. At that level, it means poverty wages for a family of three, and weakened demand for the economy. As Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan and New York's bishops concluded , this leaves workers "on the brink of homelessness, with not enough in their paychecks to pay for the most basic of necessities, like food, medicine or clothing for their children. " Poverty wages offend both justice and common sense.

Austin, Texas resident Sean Falk owns 12 Great American Cookie and Pretzelmaker franchises in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee, and he's thinking of expanding. In the past year, Falk opened two locations, and signed agreements to open another two whenever he decides in the future. But until he gains more clarity about federal policies affecting his franchises and employees — the Affordable Care Act, taxes, and President Obama's proposal during the State of the Union address to raise the minimum...

The last time Congress passed a minimum wage increase, Wal-Mart's chief executive at the time seemed to lead the way. "The U.S. minimum wage of $5.15 an hour has not been raised in nearly a decade, and we believe it is out of date with the times," then-chief executive H. Lee Scott Jr. said in a 2005 speech to company executives that connected low wages to troubles for the retailer's patrons. "Our customers simply don't have the money to buy basic necessities between paychecks.