- Mixed results in U.S. study of increasing minimum wage, By Annie Lowrey, February 18, 2014, New York Times: “A popular Democratic proposal to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, championed by President Obama, might reduce total employment by 500,000 workers by the second half of 2016. But it would also lift 900,000 families out of poverty and increase the incomes of 16.5 million low-wage workers in an average week. That is the conclusion of a detailed assessment of how raising the minimum wage would affect incomes, employment and the federal budget. The report was released Tuesday by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The complicated, nuanced analysis provides fuel for both supporters and critics of the policy, which would affect millions of low-wage workers and businesses — showing it might lead to fewer jobs, but also higher incomes…”
- Higher minimum wage would reduce jobs but increase incomes, CBO says, By Jim Puzzanghera, February 18, 2014, Los Angeles Times: “Increasing the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour would cause the loss of about 500,000 jobs but would boost earnings for about 16.5 million low-wage workers, the Congressional Budget Office said Tuesday. The report said that most low-wage workers ‘would receive higher pay that would increase their family’s income, and some of those families would see their income rise above the federal poverty threshold.’ ‘But some jobs for low-wage workers would probably be eliminated, the income of most workers who became jobless would fall substantially, and the share of low-wage workers who were employed would probably fall slightly,’ the CBO said…”
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty