CBO: $10.10 minimum wage would cause 500K lost jobs, raise incomes for 16.5M

By Joseph Lawler | Washington Examiner

Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 by 2016 would increase wages for 16.5 million workers but lead to a loss of about 500,000 jobs, according to an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office released Tuesday afternoon.

The potential job losses projected by the CBO ranged from a “slight decrease” in employment to as many as 1 million.

The CBO examined the effects of a minimum wage increase similar to that advocated by congressional Democrats and the Obama administration, one that would raise the legal minimum hourly wage and index the rate to inflation so its value would not erode over time.

That measure would lift 900,000 American families above the poverty line, the CBO projected, raising their total incomes by an aggregate $5 billion. In aggregate, the hike would raise earnings for low-income workers by $31 billion.

at Washington Examiner.

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