The Orange Path

Minimum wage, minimum benefit

Free Exchange, The Economist Blog
27th May 2008

Most of those weighing in on the topic readily acknowledge that for small increases in the wage level, disemployment effects are likely to be insignificant, but that for larger increases, employers are indeed likely to create fewer jobs.The debates then centre on the issue of how large an increase is feasible without fuelling growth in unemployment and whether such an increase could make a material difference in the lives of wage earners.
[http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2008/05/minimum_wage_minimum_benefit.cfm]

How to Make the Poor Poorer

Richard Posner and Gary Becker
Wall Street Journal, 26th January 2007
http://users2.wsj.com/lmda/do/checkLogin?mg=wsj-users2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB116978492591488718.html%3Fmod%3Dopinion_main_commentaries

An increase in the minimum wage raises the costs of fast foods and other goods produced with large inputs of unskilled labor. Producers adjust both by substituting capital inputs and/or high-skilled labor for minimum-wage workers and, because the substitutes are more costly (otherwise the substitutions would have been made already), by raising prices.
...
Mr. Salanie has argued that the minimum wage also contributes to the dismal employment prospects of young persons in France, including Muslim youths, an estimated 40% of whom are unemployed.

Spinimum Wage

By Tim Worstall
TCS Daily, 16th October 2006
Web link

Raising the minimum wage is precisely and exactly what should not be done -- due both to predictable ill-effects and to the questionable morality of such an action.

More Evidence on Minimum Wage Effects

by Chris Dillow
Stumbling and Mumbling, Jan 2006

Given these problems, I'm with Tim and Don; a minimum wage is a terribly inefficient way to help the poor.

Web link here -->>