I don't think she's saying 'the government should appropriate those bonuses and give them to minimum wage workers,' but rather, 'clearly, the national economy is capable of sustaining an increased minimum wage.'My company likely employs very few, if any minimum wage workers. I don't see why there's even a comparison between the earnings in the finance world and minimum wage workers?
My reply was in response to mk's comment more than it was to the article. I have no qualms with raising the minimum wage, substantially. I do take issue with anyone giving a crap about bonuses in any industry, unless it's government, if you are a shareholder in a company that is excessive in the way in which it compensates its people or the specific company took govt bail out money that it has yet to payback. Otherwise, it's none of my business how much money some mid-level manager makes in his bonus check.
Is there some point at which you would start having qualms? What are the negative consequences you would watch out for as warning signs that you raised minimum wage too far? Do those consequences not exist at the current level? I think I have figured out what the optimal level is.I have no qualms with raising the minimum wage, substantially.
I consider it highly fascinating that there is a mindset which allows one to look at the national wealth and income distribution of the US and come to the conclusion that the problem is a minimum wage greater than 0. I'm sure it makes sense within the theoretical framework you're coming from. That's why "Real world economics" is a thing.
It's not clear what problem you suppose I am trying to address. Let's say it is the existence of poverty in a prosperous country like the United States. Old-fashioned economics explains why I think minimum wage contributes more to the problem than it relieves. When stuff costs more, people buy less of it. I don't see any reason why this would not be true of labor as it is of goods and services. When the thing for sale is a math lesson or a massage, the good essentially is labor. A minimum hourly wage of $7 or 8 is too low to do much harm. Most people earn more than that, and I imagine that many unemployed people would not choose to work for less than that. And the law is full of exemptions like the Bonior loophole and for internships and even volunteerism. But those it hurts are the very people who suffer from poverty that we intend to help. Those who appear to be helped by minimum wage may be subject to compensating adjustments in the workplace, since businesses do not succeed by operating as charities. Some flaws were found in my earlier argument, but my strongest points were not acknowledged. "The chief practical negative of minimum wage is increased unemployment among the most vulnerable workers, who would most benefit from greater access to employment."