Raising the Minimum Wage

The Democrats have made a 100 hour promise to Americans and one of the first orders of business will be raising the minimum wage. Who will this affect?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics only 2.5 percent of the population (16 years and older) makes at or below the Federal Minimum Wage... $5.15 and hour. Wait, below? Sure, some occupations are exempt from minmum wage legislation. 1.9% of the population makes less than $5.15. So 0.6% are potentially affected.

The size of the increase will determine what side effects occur as a result. Given that so few people earn 5.15 an hour, I would think very little. While there are some theoretical (and philosophical) arguments to not increase the minimum wage, few people can/will understand the reasons behind the objection so Republicans (and fiscally conservative Democrats) should try to minimize the raise.

--Joey