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I Opinion
by numerous top economists and by the National Federation of Independent Business, which represents more than a half-million of the country’s small firms.
It’s to be hoped that members of Congress now understand What business owners have known all along: If you force employers to raise wages, some will have to lay off people, delay creating new job slots or substitute machines for people. And the .employers are most likely to make those decisions are in state already facing high unemployment.
Job losses from a wage hike are a fact that unions still debate. But their arguments are so much smoke. The National Restaurant Association surveyed its members after the last minimum-wage hike to determine its effect on employment and prices.
Because nearly a third of all minimum-wage earners work in food services, the results are telling: 70 percent of the association’s members had reduced the hours of employees, 48 percent had laid off workers and 28 percent had added labor-saving equipment. Further, nine out of 10 restaurants had raised prices.
Even in prosperous areas of the country, a
95.7%