I just got my morning reading done and saw a "snark" diary on the minimum wage that was posted last night. I left a comment - but it is so late no one will see it, so I repost it here as a short diary entry.
There is nothing "snarky" about minimum wage when it comes to ALEC "Model Legislation".
A look at ALEC's stance on minimum wage
Starting (Minimum) Wage Repeal Act
The Starting (Minimum) Wage Repeal Act repeals all starting (minimum) wage laws and preempts localities from enacting further laws which would attempt to establish a starting wage. (Update 1996, pg. 29)
Resolution In Opposition To Any Increase In the Starting (Minimum) Wage
The Resolution in Opposition to Any Increase in the Starting (Minimum) Wage recognizes that increasing the starting (minimum) wage is counterproductive. An increase in the starting wage makes it more difficult for employers to bring teenagers, entry-level workers, and others who need job experience, into the workforce where they can gain skills, training and confidence. (Update '1996, pg. 33)
And then there is this from an article written By Missouri State Representative Bonnie Sue Cooper, ALEC's 1997 National Chair
“Minimum wage laws are another example of emotional do-goodery outweighing reason. We set a wage rate that is illegal to undercut, but there is no science used to arrive at that figure. Instead, we rely on our intentions to "help," and end up putting the unskilled and uneducated out of jobs and the fledgling entrepreneur out of business.”
And they are still at it a decade later in 2007…in an article by By Rep. Susan Lynn
57th District, Tennessee
It sounds reasonable; however, mandated wage hikes actually hurt the very people they are trying to help—low-skilled and entry-level employees. Such hikes force employers to make strategic decisions to overcome increased labor cost. Lowskilled and entry-level employees lose on-the-job training opportunities as employers leave jobs vacant, reduce hours, forgo raises, and raise prices in order to pay the higher wage. All of these effects make jobs either harder to find or make life more expensive. We should not push employers down in order to raise workers up. (Source: InsideALEC – May 2007)
ALEC doesn't give up on anything that has a detrimental impact on their corporate sector members - so don't expect them to let the minimum wage issue go away.
And then there's your ALEC state legislator who is more than happy to help out ALEC's corporate members with wage legislation.
If you don’t know what ALEC is – it's time you did
please read this or this.