Use the Free Market to Raise the Minimum Wage
This may sound crazy, but how about we use the free market to raise the minimum wage instead of a government mandate? I thought about this while watching the President give a speech recently in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Speaking at the University of Michigan, the President called on Congress to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. The President says it would lift wages for 28 million Americans.
While I oppose government-mandated raises in the minimum wage, I do believe people should be paid well. This is why when I shop; I tend to support places that pay higher wages. So that means a big box store like Costco is more likely to get my business than Wal-Mart. A downtown restaurant will always get my business over McDonald’s or Burger King. And I am one of those people who have no issue with shelling out $3-$4 for a venti Pike’s Blend.
Now of course, because I choose to shop at places that pay higher wages, I also get the consequence of paying higher prices. Which means in order for Starbucks to pay up to $13 an hour for someone to make me a tall cup of coffee with a double shot of expresso; they have to charge me more. And I’m cool with that. I demand a certain product done in a certain way and I am willing to pay for it. I am using the free market to encourage companies and employers to pay higher wages.
And for all my friends who support raising the minimum wage, I suggest you do the same. Instead of buying items on the cheap, start hitting the most expensive stores in town and purchase your everyday goods and services. Spend $5 on a cup of coffee and $10 for a cheeseburger. In other words, practice what you preach to the rest of us. And if enough if you do it, we could see wages rise in no time.
It’s one thing to run your mouth and call for increases in the minimum wage. It’s another thing to put your money there.
