Minimum Wage, Maximum Propaganda

The battle over the federal minimum wage has morphed into a propaganda war waged by President Obama and his Democrat cronies. Armed with deception, urban fables and distortions they have marched into the arena of public opinion to promulgate a counterfeit argument for increasing pay.

To hear Obama and his puppets tell it, there are millions of poor single mothers with two or more kids toiling in minimum wages jobs, unable to put food on the family's table. This image has been nurtured to promote the idea of raising the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $10 or more.

However beguiling the illustration, it has been fabricated to deceive average Americans.  The duplicity is easily exposed by facts.  But the mainstream media has invested itself in substantiating Obama's agenda, even if it means sacrificing what little journalistic scruples remain.

Few Americans are actually working for the federal minimum wage. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, about four percent of hourly-paid employees earn $7.25.  If you include both hourly and salaried employees, just 2.9 percent of Americans make the federal minimum.

Last year, a total of 1.6 million workers were paid the federal minimum wage.  Ninety-seven percent of American workers earn more than the minimum wage.

Nearly two-thirds of minimum wage earners receive a raise within 1-to-12 months on the job. The notion that minimum wagers earners are a permanent underclass is simply false.  Part-time workers are more likely to earn the minimum wage than full-time employees.

The majority of minimum-wage workers are between the ages of 16 and 24.  Many are students or part-timers just starting their working careers.  Three-fourths of workers 25 and older in a minimum wage jobs live above the federal poverty line.

A recent study at American University found that among families where one adult was earning minimum wage, 94 percent had a spouse who brought home more money. In fact, the average household income of a majority of minimum-wage workers is more than $53,000 a year.  

The mythical single mom with kids working for minimum wage is more fiction rather than fact.  That doesn't mean there are not some that fit this description, but it is a rarity and not the rule.  Single parents making minimum wage are just four percent of the workforce.

The mantra of the Obama apostles has been to clamor for a "living wage."  It is an elusive concept. For example, a minimum wage worker in New York City would need to earn nearly $30 an hour to match the buying power of a entry level employee making $7.25 hourly in Harlingen, Texas.

Many cities and states already have minimum wage rates that are above the federal level.   Oregon hiked its minimum to $8.30 an hour. Washington state trumped that by raising its minimum to $9.04. California's legislature recently passed a bill to shove the rate to $10. San Francisco has extorted a $10.24 hourly minimum from businesses.

So why are Obama and Democrats hell bent on bumping up the federal minimum wage?

The answer is two-fold.  First, it is good politics because the issue resonates with most Americans. Everyone can rally around the idea of a decent wage.  Since more than 9 out of 10 Americans already earn more than federal minimum, it is hard for them to be against the idea.

Secondarily, the issue has the backing of powerful unions.  Many union contracts peg wage rates to the federal hourly minimum.  For instance, an agreement might have provisions for automatic adjustments if the hourly minimum increases.  The unions are not interested in single moms unless they pay dues.

Even supporters of jacking up the minimum wage surely understand the economic reality that an hourly wage boost will suppress job growth.  Studies have repeatedly shown that businesses hire fewer workers, or reduce hours or layoff employees in the face of sharp increases in wages.

There has been no empirical evidence to date to buttress Obama's case for bumping up the federal minimum wage.  Until there is something more than emotional exaggerations and dishonest information, the minimum should remain exactly where it is today.