[rollei_list] OT: Minimun Wage Laws

  • From: Marc James Small <marcsmall@xxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: rollei_list@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Wed, 20 Aug 2008 21:21:25 -0400

At 08:07 PM 8/20/2008, you wrote:


>   How in the world is a minimum wage law a fraud?  I
>suppose the idea is that employers should be able to have
>slave labor. Workers have almost no rights whatever in this
>country already and it irks me when people argue that that's
>the way things should be based on some obscure
>interpretation of law.
>    I am one of those commie, pinko, liberals that think
>individuals should have some power over their own lives and
>be able to live decently.

Well, in regard to the second point, yes, I agree. You can refuse to work. I see nothing wrong in the organization of labor unions. I do see something evil when the government mandates union membership. Stand up for yourself, brother. Don't expect others to do so.

Minimum Wage laws are blatantly fraudulent. Review your copy of Ludwig von Mises as he addresses this in detail, as do many others. Such laws reduce the numbers of jobs available. The economics are simple: if Merchant A has $1000 a week to pay for wages and the minimum wage is $5.00 an hour, then he can only hire 5 folks -- $5 an hour time 40 equals $200, and 5 times $200 equals that $1000. Now, if the minimum wage goes up to,say, $7.50 an hour, then the merchant is most desperately squeezed. Three things can ease this:

a), and the most probable:  he lays off people

b) and the hopeful solution, his workstaff understand the problem and start producing more to accommodate the problem, and this is unlikkely

c) the least likely solution is that the merchant will raise prices and, if he does so, then you and I and every other person in this nation are paying the price. I am most unhappy at THAT solution.

Lochner was good law and it is a shame that the US Courts have abrogated it. Let's dump mandatory union membership and minimum wage laws and get back to basic economic realities, to the benefit of this nation. Sure, some folks will hurt but, what the hey, folks are hurting under our current system and more folks would benefit and the benefit would be more widely spread if mandatory union membership was eliminated and if the minimum wage laws were done to death.

I doubt that this moderately socialist Supreme Court will do much with the union-membership bit but they might toss out the minimum wage. The US economy would boom upwards immediately -- Richard, this would include YOUR 401(K) account. You are a capitalist, howevermuch you claim the contrary. Me? I don't have a 401(K) or an IRA but I DO trust the US economy as long as Big Labor and Big Government leave it alone.

Marc


msmall@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Cha robh bàs fir gun ghràs fir!

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