Study: 700,000 North Carolinians would benefit from minimum-wage boost (Winston-Salem, Salem: how much, employment)

[SunnyKayak]

About 700,000 North Carolinians would be helped if Congress passed President Obama's push to increase the minimum wage to $9 an hour, according to a report from the N.C. Justice Center.

In North Carolina, the estimated impact on the state’s Gross Domestic Product of a minimum-wage increase to $9 is $495 million with an estimated 4,300 new jobs created, the report finds.

Study: 700,000 in N.C. would benefit from increase in minimum wage - Winston-Salem Journal: Local

[LLN]

The assumption, of course, is that with added expenses employers would retain all 700K in the workforce.

Probably another case where the law of unintended consequences would rear its ugly head.

[MrRational]

About 700,000 North Carolinians would be helped if Congress passed President Obama's push to increase the minimum wage to $9 an hour, according to a report from the N.C. Justice Center.

Is "helped" the standard? How about achieving actual self sufficiency?

Originally Posted by TheSameWSJArticle

The Living Income Standard is $41,920 per year for a family of three.
...measuring how much income a family in North Carolina actually needs to make ends meet.

$41,920 /1.5 full time working adults /1800 clocked hours = $15.52 per hour

Where would the other $6.52 this family needs come from?
How about the $14.28 needed if there is only one (1800hr) FT adult?

Originally Posted by Mort

The Great Recession is an apt name for America's current stagnation, but the present phase might also be called the Grand Illusion—because the happy talk and statistics that go with it, especially regarding jobs, give a rosier picture than the facts justify. LINK

The minimum wage is based on an ever expanding industrial economy with lot's of slots
for the low/no skilled that no longer exists and probably never will again.
Tweaking the MW rate solves nothing.

The un and under employment problem in the US is far less about not having enough jobs for
everyone that might want one than it is about having far too many people available for the jobs
that actually need doing.