An $8.75 minimum wage in Portland? Why not $18.75 or $25.75? Where will the non-market-driven wage increases come from? From higher prices for goods and services or from saved wages of laid-off workers.
After Oakland, California, raised its minimum wage, numerous restaurants in the Chinatown district closed because labor costs eliminated profits. Spain, Greece and South Africa all have generous minimum-wage laws. They also share an unemployment rate of close to 25 percent.
The fashionable notions of third parties and governments raising minimum wages have no regard for whether everyone is productive enough to be worth paying the wage they set. Setting a higher minimum wage is merely taking from others (in the form of increased prices) and giving to those workers.
The phrase “from each according to their ability, to each according to their need,” opined by Karl Marx, describes the mandated wage increase.
I applaud Gov. LePage’s endeavor to thwart minimum-wage increases. The capitalistic market should be the ultimate arbiter of an individual’s compensation, not the elected government officials.
Steve Merritt
Old Orchard Beach
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.