Mitch

Recently Mitch McConnell commented that the $1,400 payment to those in need under the recent Covid rescue bill was deterring the recipients from going back to work. I can imagine that for most, the funds went for payment of utilities, food, and credit card bills. Companies that hire entry-level workers are making the same claim that they cannot hire workers because of the rescue funds. It might be the case for a few but the vast majority of potential workers are probably through spending that money.

The crux of the problem that Mitch and companies that hire entry level workers don’t understand is that if their wage scale is SO LOW that a mere $1,400 is competing for a job, they better consider raising their wages. Mitch’s statement, taken in reverse, is an admission as to the sorry state of the minimum wage in America. 

Entry-level jobs are primarily held by minorities of all ages. Suppressing wages by not raising the minimum wage in all sections of the country over the next several years will have a cumulative effect on poverty given the current prospects of inflation. The facts of wage disparity illustrate that the free market in highly industrialized economies cannot prevent the rise of a few very rich and powerful and leave many in poverty without power.

America has addressed this situation on several occasions. Three come to mind. The trust busting and control of interstate commerce headed by the Muckrakers of the 1890’s, the Progressive movement of post- World War I and the Roosevelt Era. 

As in the past, the solution remains at the ballot box. Hopefully, the current efforts at voter suppression and gerrymandering will not impact the minimum wage effort. At this point, however, it is an uphill battle.

FW 5/7/21