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The national minimum wage standard is set to increase from $6.55/hour to $7.25/hour on July 24. But Illinois workers who earn minimum wage will see a larger increase sooner than that. State laws have the state minimum wage set to hit $8.00/hour starting tomorrow. It's the second step up in a three-step process that concludes next July when the state minimum wage will reach $8.25/hour. [Sun-Times]
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This should help unemployment drop tremendously. I am pretty sure the reason so many unskilled laborers are unemployed is because they did not want to work for such a low wage. Now that the government has increased it, business owners should be handing out jobs left and right.
This is another piss poor economic idea that sounds good in theory as hey, "every worker gets more!" However, it does not take the supply side into effect. Businesses laying off workers being paid $7 an hour certainly can't afford to bring back workers at $8. Ironically but not surprisingly, all lawmakers representing poor wards and districts support it.
The current problem with high unemployment has little to do with minimum wage jobs. Wal-mart, for instance, has been one of the few companies that has actually grown its workforce in the last two years ... and I doubt you'll see Wal-mart show any less interest in a south side store as a result of this.
No, the problem is that these seem to be the only jobs available, and minimum wage isn't the preferred alternative for someone who a year ago was making $80,000 working at a bank, or even $40,000 working a blue collar job.