Will Voters Roll Back Minimum-Wage Hike? – IOTW Report

Will Voters Roll Back Minimum-Wage Hike?

CPR: California voters apparently aren’t the only ones who believe that wealth can be created by government edict and income inequality fixed by approving ever-higher minimum-wage rates.

In the 72,000-population northern Arizona city of Flagstaff, voters in November 2016 approved a measure that raises the minimum wage to $12.50 an hour this year — and to $15 an hour by 2021. The City Council slowed implementation, but boosted the wage to $15.50 by 2022. That the local economy might not sustain such raises isn’t much of a concern to supporters.

Fortunately, a recent court ruling will allow local voters in the November 2018 election to consider a repeal of the wage hikes. But the fracas gained national attention shortly after the law was passed because, in the words of one resident quoted by the Associated Press, it had set the community “at each other’s throats.” Tensions are still high as the matter continues to dominate local politics. That’s what happens when economic opportunity is viewed as a zero-sum game, and when government decides what private businesses must pay their employees.

“We’ve already seen prices of goods and services increase and entry level positions being eliminated,” explained a fact sheet from the Greater Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce, which helped place the Sustainable Wages Act on the coming ballot. If that rollback measure passes, Flagstaff’s minimum wage will top out at $12.50 an hour.  read more

10 Comments on Will Voters Roll Back Minimum-Wage Hike?

  1. The minimum wage should be zero. When no one is willing to work for that, the employer, not the government, will raise his/her minimum wage until someone is willing to trade his/her time for that wage.

    Hope I didn’t offend anyone by using only two pronouns and genders.

  2. If a minimum wage is going to be passed at least make it worthwhile like $50.00 an hour to start! Just need to sell more $25.00 McBurgers (and maybe a side order of fries for $15.00) to make up for it!

  3. I have been thinking that putting a maximum wage initiative on the Seattle and Portland ballots may be a way to end the slow-motion trainwrecks that I have been watching for most of my adult life and jump right to the grand finale

  4. The problem is we have a lot of citizens/voters that don’t understand basic economics. They’ve been taught that rich people are their employers and they just don’t want to pay them fairly. The Republicans do a lousy job explaining what will happen in the economy when the min wage is increased. I know demonizing the rich is easy and effective but we need to learn to counter that. It is too late if you learn after the damage has been done.

  5. @Anonymous February 19, 2018 at 1:10 pm

    > They’ve been taught that rich people are their employers and they just don’t want to pay them fairly. The Republicans do a lousy job explaining what will happen in the economy when the min wage is increased.

    You seem to be under the delusion that those are mutually exclusive.

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