CA's Month-Old $20 Minimum Wage Already an Economic Disaster

California Democrats who pushed through the state’s punitive new minimum wage must be feeling mighty proud about now. Not only are fast-food joints closing or replacing low-end employees with overseas workers and robots, now the law is costing the very people it was supposed to help while decimating consumers’ wallets. Well done! ...

Advertisement

Hoover Institution senior fellow and economist Lee Ohanian showed just how quickly bad policies can wreck an economy. And the damage was done even before the law officially went into effect a month ago today.

“Between last fall and January,” Ohanian wrote, “California fast-food restaurants cut about 9,500 jobs, representing a 1.3% change from September 2023.” By comparison, overall employment in California during that period fell just 0.2%.


Ed Morrissey

We have been raising minimum wage levels for the last six decades. Has it ever actually solved poverty? Or has it just created more of it?

Hint: If the answer to the first question is 'yes,' then why did we need to do it again and again and again?

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Trending on HotAir Videos

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement