Economic Freedoms

The Libertarian Party of Oklahoma supports economic liberties just as we support personal liberties.

Minimum Wage

The Libertarian Party of Oklahoma believes potential employees should be free to work for the wages upon which they agree with their employers.

Minimum Wage Archives

Michael Dukakis and Daniel Mitchell say raising the minimum wage will make it more difficult for low-skilled workers to find jobs.

Tom Miller thinks a free market system does not need a minimum wage law and that they are used for political purposes. A letter to the Oklahoman.

Duane L. Burgess thinks that future belongs to the entrepreneur in a letter to the Oklahoman.

David Lewis estimates that for each 10 percent increase in the minimum wage, employment among low-skilled workers drops by 5 percent.

David Splinter, OKLP Vice-Chair, questions the effects of raising the minimum wage and proposes a free market alternative in a letter to the Gazette.

The UCO Policy Institute says raising the minimum wage 10% puts 2% of teenagers out of work. (So the proposed 50% increase could cause up to 10% of teenagers to lose their jobs.)

Oklahoma Labor Commissioner Brenda Reneau recognizes good intentions behind wanting to raise the minimum wage, but questions the economic reality. (when the Federal Minimum Wage was raised in 1997 teenage unemployment jumped from 7.2% to 19.8%)

Sharayah Russo says raising the minimum wage raises the cost of living in a letter to the editor in The Oklahoman.

Minimum Wage Bill worries small business owners in Maine.

Bruce Barlett, Bush critic and author of Impostor, says the minimum wage is a bad idea.

Economist Walter Williams say the minimum wage is maximum folly. Duane L. Burgess thinks that future belongs to the entrepreneur in a letter to the Oklahoman.

Good for both ends?

The Oklahoman, Letter to the Editor 6/27/06

A free-market system where costs are established based on supply and demand has no need for a minimum-wage law. These types of laws become political pawns to help get votes in an election. However, if the politicians insist on having a minimum-wage law, why not have a maximum-wage law? If it's good for one end of the wage scale, why not the other?

Tom Miller, Oklahoma City

Bad idea

The Oklahoman, Letter to the Editor 6/22/06

Raising the minimum wage is a bad idea. It would raise the cost of everything else -- milk, bread, hamburgers, etc. Those of us who live on fixed incomes would be forced to leave the state.

Gladys Thornton, Madill

Paradigm shift under way

The Oklahoman, Letter to the Editor 6/15/06

David Lewis (Opinion, June 11) points out the probable negative impact of trying to aid low-income people by raising the minimum wage. Some small increase for inflation may be justified, but people should not attempt to live on minimum wage. It's unrealistic and shouldn't be a person's goal.

America also faces a "problem of wages" in general. The business climate is changing rapidly. Prices continue to rise, some sharply, but wages are stagnant and in some sectors are even declining. It's like trying to play a game while the rules keep changing. Many jobs simply don't cover genuine costs of living any more. A paradigm shift is under way and the future belongs to the entrepreneur.

Duane L. Burgess, Edmond

Problems with Wage increase

The Oklahoman 6/11/06
http://newsok.com/article/1868099/
By David Lewis

Again this year a group of state lawmakers has attempted to raise Oklahoma's minimum wage above the federal standard. One bill would hike the overall payroll burden on employers by nearly 20 percent. This may sound very appealing if you're an employee. As a political matter, raising the minimum wage sounds good. But a closer analysis shows the negative impact a self-imposed minimum wage would actually have on low-income families in Oklahoma. It has the potential to do much more harm than good.

The federal government has set the minimum wage in America at $5.15 per hour. But the vast majority of jobs in Oklahoma pay well above the minimum due to our free-market system. Regardless if you're an accountant or laborer, you won't show up to work at a company that pays $5.15 per hour if your skills warrant higher pay down the street. The simple economics of supply and demand increase pay for most Oklahomans well above the minimum wage.

A recent study by the Employment Policy Institute shows that nearly half of all families living below the poverty line manage to make it over the poverty line within one year. A study by the Cato Institute showed that minimum-wage workers receive an average of 30 percent wage increase within their first year on the job as their skills increase. So the scheduled mandatory increase proposed by some members of the Legislature is actually less than the pay raises that occur naturally in a free market system. We aren't even taking into account the other free social services available to the working poor.

Most beneficiaries of a minimum wage hike wouldn't be poor fathers and mothers. Of all people making minimum wage, statistics show that only 15 percent actually live in poverty. Others are often high school students of working-class families, and retirees with other sources of income who work to stay busy. Many labor experts, including myself, estimate that for each 10 percent increase in the minimum wage, employment among low-skilled workers drops by 5 percent. The now-perennial proposal to increase the minimum wage by 20 percent would put an additional 10 percent of low-income workers in the unemployment lines. Admittedly the proposed minimum wage increase would help some Oklahomans who live in poverty. However, it also would put nearly the same number of low-wage earners out of work altogether; that is too costly a price. It's stealing from the poor to pay the poor.

This year's version of the minimum wage increase did not pass in the Legislature despite rumors of reviving the initiative again during the special session. However, this threat in sheep's clothing shouldn't go unnoticed. While minimum-wage jobs still serve as the best way to begin a career and gain valuable skills, it serves to remind business leaders in the private sector that we must strive to compensate Oklahoma workers aggressively so our legislators won't feel it necessary to impose counterproductive measures in an effort to tweak our free-market system. Lewis is a work force expert certified as a professional in human resources and is area manager of Express Personnel Services in Oklahoma City. In addition to legislative efforts, an initiative petition drive seeks a statewide election to increase the minimum wage.

Bad Trade-Off

Letter to Editor
The Gazette 5/24/06

Policy decisions involve trade-offs: some win, some lose. Raising Oklahoma’s minimum wage means some workers will receive higher wages while other will lose their jobs.

Raising labor costs discourages businesses from creating jobs, while making investments in technology more attractive. In a recent release, the UCO Policy Institute said that a 2% decrease in teenage employment historically follows a 10% increase in the minimum wage. The current ballot initiative would raise the state minimum wage by at least 39%, perhaps causing 8% of teenagers to lose their jobs or go unemployed. Is this the right way to create opportunities for young Oklahomans?

I believe in supporting businesses paying living wages. We need a way to identify those businesses so we can support them. Just as we have Fair Trade coffee and Smoke-Free restaurants, businesses can identify themselves as Living Wage Employers. If consumers are informed, we can vote with our pocketbooks.

Even though raising the minimum wage may benefit some individuals, it limits overall job creation. Instead, with voluntary support of Living Wage Employers, our community stays responsible for supporting our young employees.

David Splinter

Raise repercussions

Letter to the Editor
Sunday Oklahoman 3/26/06

When the minimum wage has been raised in the past, the cost of living has gone up. Why do we need to raise the minimum wage? To entice employers to raise the cost of the merchandise they sell? To drive business owners to move their enterprises to bordering states where the minimum wage is lower?

I don't know any adults trying to support themselves on a minimum-wage job. The majority of minimum-wage employees are under 18. I don't know too many teenagers who have to have a high starting wage and who can't wait until they get a raise. Oklahoma has one of the lowest costs of living. Let's keep it that way. I am a teenager. Would I like to make more money? Absolutely! Am I willing to suffer the repercussions that will undoubtedly follow? Not in the least.

Sharayah Russo, Oklahoma City