The wage would increase from $17/hr. to $30/hr. minimum wage by 2030. The proposed wage would increase in gradual increments by 2030 for larger employers with smaller businesses less than 500 employees given until a deadline of 2031 to reach the $30 benchmark wage.
Economist Ted Jones says raising wages doesn’t solve the problem because not everyone has an adequate skill set. “You don’t increase the minimum wage just to say we got to give them more. You provide them the ability to make more money on what they are providing to society and their employers.” Jones said.
Jones uses Seattle, Washington as an example. He says they jumped to $21.30/hour. He says the Taco Bell he visited shifted to using a kiosk. "They no longer had staff- saving on labor costs. “My tacos went from 99 cents to $2.79 and I had to go through a kiosk. I never got my tacos how I wanted it. So, I quit eating there. They not only lost jobs from the counter, but they lost customers.” He said.
On the flip side, the mom and pops businesses won’t be able to keep up with the cost to run a business with these mandatory minimum wages and the restaurant sector will also take a hit- more-so the over-the-counter jobs requiring hourly wages as opposed to server jobs with tips. He says this will hurt a minimum wage earner- because these businesses will no longer be sustainable and will not be available increasing the unemployment rate.
“If you really want to help out people, you don’t increase the minimum wage. What we need to do is- make the employees more marketable and more valuable to society and that’s the route we should go.” Jones said.
He says these policies are a disaster forcing Americans to leave blue states like New Jersey, (Seattle region) Washington and California searching for employment, affordability and a better quality of life.