Blatherskite

I stumbled across an article in the New York Times this morning that addresses a local issue (which is also a national issue); The Minimum Wage. In Washington the Minimum Wage is the highest in the Nation at $7.93. The article is about people from Western Idaho crossing the State Line to work in Eastern Washingon because the min. wage 54% higher in Washington than it is in Idaho. A decade ago when the WA min. wage hike was proposed, there were many people arguing that it would cause small business in WA to go under. But you know what? The opposite has happened:

Nearly a decade ago, when voters in Washington approved a measure that would give the state’s lowest-paid workers a raise nearly every year, many business leaders predicted that small towns on this side of the state line would suffer.

But instead of shriveling up, small-business owners in Washington say they have prospered far beyond their expectations. In fact, as a significant increase in the national minimum wage heads toward law, businesses here at the dividing line between two economies — a real-life laboratory for the debate — have found that raising prices to compensate for higher wages does not necessarily lead to losses in jobs and profits.

It makes sense, doesn’t it? If people are making more money then they will spend it. It’s really quite logical. If they can barely afford to buy groceries then they certainly won’t be able to afford luxeries such as going out to a locally owned restaurant to eat a nice dinner. So in Washingon the higher Minimum wage has helped everyone all around.

So let’s raise it nationally already.

Read the article here:

For $7.93 an Hour, It’s Worth a Trip Across a State Line – New York Times