Ca Considers Raising Minimum Wage to $10

the state of California through a democratic small D democratic process the elected representatives have the people love the state of California representing a over seventy percents majority of californians according to polls who want the minimum wage raised the state of california is going to be raising their minimum wage it's going to take three years to do it but it's going to go up to 10 bucks an hour which is still below where was in 1968 but they're doing it this will add billions of dollars to the state's economy particularly money coming into the state because many of these large companies that pay very very little Walmart for example page 28 percent below the average for big-box retailers every night they push a button and every Walmart store in california all that money goes cap like that in a vacuum cleaner to a giant bank down Ben feller arkansas so ceremony leaving California going arkansas every night a little bit more about will stay in California circulating the state's economy so it's a huge stimulus to the state not to mention that the workers will spend that money gonna be a good thing for californians right now thirty million workers nationwide are making less than workers made in 1968 adjusted for inflation is this is incredible every dollar increase up the minimum wage results in twenty eight hundred dollars in new consumer spending from that households their workers household over the years the best way to stimulate an economy bar none Adrian Moore doctor Adrian more however vice president for policy at the Reason Foundation an economist begs to differ or defer reason not our course website doctor more welcome welcome Tom thank you so a couple questions first evolved this minimum wage increase in california is supported by a majority of californians it was passed by the elected representatives have californians what don't you like about democracy test I haven't said anything against democracy Tom I do you believe that everything the government does like a who bring up all over private data I mean it's our democratically elected government that the by violating our privacy what do you have against democracy if the master if the vast majority of Americans are in favor of it if their elected representatives voted for it neither which i think is the case in with much what the NSA is doing on then I would be in favor of the yes I realize there are shortcomings that democracy the majority of Americans a were in favor of slave really southern to Americans for some time but it this ya I i still dont think that that the that's a that's a strong argument if a majority of americans think this is good policy if if some economists yourself excluded can build an argument that it might be good to policy and if the elected representatives do it that is a classic example the democratic process or the Republican process actually I action and I and review it does need is it is the process because I mean and I don't think that whether something was done democratically determines whether it's right or wrong it may determine whether it was done in the right fashion are no I'm it and if it's gonna work its gonna fail it's going to be a disaster than the people can undo it that's true the people can and do it but the fact the matter is that we've had ever since 1935 when them whether minimum wage went into effect we've had you know all these better wage increases I forget the numbers I 38 minimum wage increases and set time and not once has there been a disaster in fact every single time the economy has grown and not once have the people said gee that was a mistake we need to throw the bums out like people who are going to roll back tomorrow way that's because the cost are the costs are hidden INS partly why we do and why even do economic analysis unless we're going to concede that it review of things that you can't just seeing with casual observation the other cost maybe had 19 most to the cost a minimum wage increase are in the form of reduced income for billionaires in reduced dividends and but the benefits are obvious more spending in the community can argue that every time I that they are always able to pass I cost on to the consumers they rarely do that some rule some who we want to impose on them but they're not recognized that also happens when we raise the wages the caught raising brazen groove in comics but it also raises the price is good and the fact is that eilers let's not true today is worth much western unskilled labor was a hundred years ago you can't the economy is not unskilled economy more used to be unskilled wage labor a late and feel labor's wages were relatively higher because unskilled work with a bigger part the economy that that's a whole completely different argument and and and the fact that an ear your assertion that when wages are raised that that automatically means that the price a goods goes up for small in most industries wages represent a very very small part of the wage up the cost of goods but secondly the price of goods are typically fix by Mark a place forces not by wages and so it when wages are raised what happens typically is that dividends go down CEO pay goes down companies find other ways to become more efficient in fact efficiency increases in fact you can make a very very strong argument I think history throughout the sixties to the nineties makes that argument very very eloquently and when you look at efficiencies within companies that follow the years after minimum wage raises increases that minimum wage increases drive efficiencies in companies therefore they're healthy and powerful positive a force in the marketplace I i think you're asserting a cause and effect it has never been demonstrated these things all happened during the same time histories but there was a lot going on a what I don't understand is why I shouldn't wages be set competitively why shouldn't wages be if someone is willing to work at this job for fifty cents an hour left in me why shouldn't they get the job why shouldn't the job this Peter the way to be determined by the level at which people are willing to do the work because *** to you ask your dad is a genuine question I have a genuine answer at because capitalism sometimes fails you have business cycles for capitalism fails and you have high levels of unemployment during those times if I levels of unemployment the force Anna libertarians don't like fourths the force %uh nature hunger need for shelter those forces drive people to work in situations that they otherwise wouldn't work in and so if you wanna be empty if then if government was going to be the employer of last resort I would've for I would I would agree with you if we were going to maintain you know less than four percent unemployment no matter what by by doing a WPA or CCC in the government is the employer of last resort I would absolutely with you we're not doing that so what we have is a very very loose labor market and and I'm of the opinion from personally that if we're going to define the rules the game a capitalism the first rule should be if you wanna play capitalism hardcore factually free enterprise this has nothing to do with capitalism if you wanna play if you wanna play business and you can't at least pay our workers enough to live on you have no right doing business in the United States of America but why should every job pay enough to live on the whole idea %uh I I debaters diverse economy is that there are many many many jobs on which you can make a living and there are many jobs on which are not intended here at the bottom of this scale they're not jobs every job should be a should make enough to live on because every human being is worth living when you're I'm field you should not expect to be able to make a living offer more ordinary days labor why not have to you have no respect for unskilled labor no you think you just get somebody is born with an IQ of eighty five or ninety dollars down your question let me answer your questions you have to team up with somebody have a roommate have roommate have a wife or whatever other workers in your I'm talking about things a whole lot worse than last year will combine your well income so that you can have enough income to for their helpful if you're unskilled or you can get some skill and no longer be an skilled there's many ways to not have to make a living off and the labor unfair labor it for people be in temporarily when they're young Katie when they're all people when they're online not the average age of McDonalds workers 28 not a way to make a living Tom your I I will agree with you on that on all Adrian more about to leave you the last word Adrian Moore vice president for policy a reason a foundation actor Adrian Moore you can read all about it over reason .org thank you sir Phoenix up