Professor Walter Williams comments on new research showing how the minimum wage is hurting African-American employment.
Last week, two labor economists, Professors William Even (Miami University of Ohio) and David Macpherson (Trinity University), released a study for the Washington, D.C.-based Employment Policies Institute titled “Unequal Harm: Racial Disparities in the Employment Consequences of Minimum Wage Increases.” During the peak of what has been dubbed the Great Recession, the unemployment rate for young adults (16 to 24 years of age) as a whole rose to above 27 percent. The unemployment rate for black young adults was almost 50 percent, but for young black males, it was 55 percent. Even and Macpherson say that it would be easy to say this tragedy is an unfortunate byproduct of the recession, but if you said so, you’d be wrong. Their study demonstrates that increases in the minimum wage at both the state and federal level are partially to blame for the crisis in employment for minority young adults. …Among the white males, the authors find that “each 10 percent increase in a state or federal minimum wage has decreased employment by 2.5 percent; for Hispanic males, the figure is 1.2 percent. “But among black males in this group, each 10 percent increase in the minimum wage decreased employment by 6.5 percent.” The authors go on to say, “The effect is similar for hours worked: each 10 percent increase reduces hours worked by 3 percent among white males, 1.7 percent for Hispanic males, and 6.6 percent for black males.”
I don’t think that supporters of the minimum wage are racist, but there’s no doubt that they support a policy that has a disproportionately negative impact on blacks. Indeed, the same is true for the school choice issue. African-Americans are especially victimized by crummy government-run schools. Yet the same leftists who generally support higher minimum wages that lead to black unemployment are almost always against school choice, thus condemning minorities to worse life outcomes.
At some point, they should be held morally accountable for the impact of their policies. On both minimum wage laws and school choice, they’re on the wrong side because of the power of union bosses (and all the campaign cash the unions disburse). They’re not motivated by racism, but the result is racist policies.
For more information about the minimum wage, here’s some of what Orphe Divougny had to say in his Center for Freedom and Prosperity video from last year.
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] And I also gave a plug for federalism. If some states want to throw low-skilled workers out of jobs, I think that will be an awful outcome. But it won’t be as bad as a nationwide scheme to increase unemployment (especially for minorities). […]
[…] even though we have lots of evidence already that wage mandates cause joblessness (especially for minorities), let’s add to our […]
[…] And I also gave a plug for federalism. If some states want to throw low-skilled workers out of jobs, I think that will be an awful outcome. But it won’t be as bad as a nationwide scheme to increase unemployment (especially for minorities). […]
[…] And I also gave a plug for federalism. If some states want to throw low-skilled workers out of jobs, I think that will be an awful outcome. But it won’t be as bad as a nationwide scheme to increase unemployment (especially for minorities). […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] It’s especially perverse that politicians are pushing these policies when, as Walter Williams has explained, blacks and other minorities are among the biggest victims. […]
[…] I’ve noted before, some groups are more victimized than […]
[…] even though we have lots of evidence already that wage mandates cause joblessness (especially for minorities), let’s add to our […]
[…] Policies that Disproportionately Hurt Blacks Are Bad, even if They Are Unintentionally Racist […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] But it’s my mission to promote economic liberty, so I’ve written on why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] But it’s my mission to promote economic liberty, so I’ve written on why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] But it’s my mission to promote economic liberty, so I’ve written on why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] Walter Williams also has weighed in on this issue, noting specifically the negative impact of higher minimum wages on minorities. […]
[…] utterly immoral. And racist, at least in outcome if not […]
[…] I’ve noted before, some groups are more victimized than […]
[…] And I also gave a plug for federalism. If some states want to throw low-skilled workers out of jobs, I think that will be an awful outcome. But it won’t be as bad as a nationwide scheme to increase unemployment (especially for minorities). […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] P.P.S. As Walter Williams has explained, minimum wage laws are especially harmful for blacks. […]
[…] even though we have lots of evidence already that wage mandates cause joblessness (especially for minorities), let’s add to our […]
[…] wages are bad? We know they lead to bad effects such as higher unemployment, particularly for vulnerable populations, but how do these bad effects […]
[…] Walter Williams explains the racist impact of minimum-wage […]
[…] Walter Williams explains the racist impact of minimum-wage […]
[…] But it’s my mission to promote economic liberty, so I’ve written on why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] But it’s my mission to promote economic liberty, so I’ve written on why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] about the implicit racism in the minimum wage law and thereprehensible decision by leftists to put the interests of teacher unions ahead of the […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] left’s economic ideology, but that term also implies racism. But while leftists sometimes support policies that hurt minorities, they’re not motivated by racial […]
[…] It’s especially perverse that politicians are pushing these policies when, as Walter Williams has explained, blacks and other minorities are among the biggest victims. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] Walter Williams also has weighed in on this issue, noting specifically the negative impact of higher minimum wages on minorities. Indeed, he cited research showing that, “each 10 percent increase reduces hours worked by 3 percent among white males, 1.7 percent for Hispanic males, and 6.6 percent for black males.” […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
[…] Walter Williams also has weighed in on this issue, noting specifically the negative impact of higher minimum wages on minorities. […]
[…] Walter Williams also has weighed in on this issue, noting specifically the negative impact of higher minimum wages on minorities. […]
[…] Walter Williams also has weighed in on this issue, noting specifically the negative impact of higher minimum wages on minorities. […]
[…] Walter Williams also has weighed in on this issue, noting specifically the negative impact of higher minimum wages on minorities. […]
[…] already commented on the implicit racism in the minimum wage law and the reprehensible decision by leftists to put the interests of teacher union ahead of the […]
Is the minimum wage the culprit here, or is the educational system at fault. I really would like someone to do an extensive study at the worst schools in the nation with a breakdown of all races. It would be very interesting to see what the difference is.
The same teachers, same schools, same local…..why would there be a huge difference???????????
[…] noting that the minimum wage imposes disproportionate damage on the African-American community, as Walter Williams has explained. Rate this: Share this:PrintEmailFacebookTwitterMoredeliciousDiggFarkLinkedInRedditStumbleUponLike […]
[…] starting this blog, I’ve cited several columns by Walter Williams (see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here), in large part […]
[…] I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. Read more and watch the […]
[…] July 2, 2011 by Dan Mitchell My Cato colleague, Mark Calabria, recently explained how the minimum wage destroys jobs, and I’ve written on several occasions why government-mandated wages can create unemployment by making it unprofitable to hire people with low work skills and/or poor work histories. And I’ve attacked Republicans for going along with these job-killing policies, and also pointed out the racist impact of such intervention. […]
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Oh, and by the way.. This -is- a state issue. At last reading, I could not find any mention in the Constitution granting Congress the power to set a minimum wage.
Ben:
Here’s a list:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_minimum_wages_by_country
The most notable entry is Singapore, which has no laws regarding minimum wage at all. Interestingly, low minimum wages in and of itself doesn’t seem to be an indicator of national wealth. The US federal minimum wage is 33% per capita GDP. The Dominican Republic’s minimum wages average 18% per capita GDP.
However, the issue here is how it affects employment levels among young people, and in particular, young minorities. I think we would need to examine youth unemployment in countries like France and the UK where minimum wages are 53% and 66% per capita GDP respectively.
Its too bad this isn’t a state issue so we could do an experiment in one state to see what happens if you get rid of the min wage.
Are there any developed countries without min wage to compare to?