RebYidd23
Good question.
I would say there are several parts to that answer.
a) There really is no price floors on the vast majority of products in the USA, when there is the reason for such is to protect the profits of the maker not the buyer.
b) Price increase on bread at the consumer level do not necessarily have a cascading effect of forcing the price higher on peanut butter and jelly. Raising the minimum wage does.
Why does one persons right to a “living wage” infringe on the right of a struggling person to find affordable food.?
c) The majority of people opposed to the minimum wage do not oppose it entirely, what they do oppose is the standard of a “livable wage”. The majority of minimum wage positions are entry level, they are there for someone to supplement their family income, to gain a foothold in the job market, for extra cash, for temporary job seekers (i.e bochrim on bein hazmanim.
They are not meant as permanent jobs by virtue of which one can support a family, If the burger flipper in MacDonald must be payed a “livable wage” then the entire compensation structure changes after that the price raises on the burger so the livable wage is now unlivable because cheap food has become more expensive and we are now stuck in a viscous cycle. Which means the original wage increase has accomplished nothing.
d) Studies have shown that the minimum wage increase in Seattle did not lead to significant price increases and while it did result in led to lees low paying jobs but more high paying jobs. A fact which some left wing pundits have celebrated, however it is nothing short of disastrous for the working class.
Explanation.
To deal with the minimum wage increases I am purchasing robotics for tens of thousands of dollars.
This will allow me to “consolidate my work force, in other words lay people off. yet have the same production and keep my prices low.
While I am able to lay off several employees I have to higher a new more competent better trained employee to run the machine.
So the minimum wage increase will create a higher paying job by eliminating several lower paying jobs.
Exactly what the studies indicate happened in Seattle.
Now the person I am highering to run the machine is not a new hiree rather it will be an internal promotion of an employee that started out as a minimum wage worker, however that employee has begun to work herself up the ladder.
However that original position that gave her a toehold in the company is being eliminated so in present circumstances she may not have gotten the starter job that gave her the ability to realize a real career because as a young single mom she was never able to really go to school or get trained for a more advanced position.
So the minimum wage increase is in fact making it more difficult for people like her to find a job and start a career because those jobs will slowly cease to exist.