3 ms·

A better idea is making minimum wage match the poverty line. We already habe UBI for seniors and tbe disabled, and it works great.

kgwgk 10y ago
Or even better, make the minimum wage $150/hour. Why not? Or maybe you are suggesting that it should be lowered? (It's already above the poverty line for an individual in the US.)
thephyber 10y ago
Problem #1: Minimum wage locks some people out of the workforce. If you aren't disabled, but your skills don't rise the value of 2x of the minimum wage (wage + payroll taxes + benefits), then you are locked out of finding any legal work. If you start to raise the minimum wage much higher than it already is, you will start to make some forms or work and some industries economically unfeasible. Problem #2: Disability most definitely does not "work great". If you take disability, you can be charged with a felony for every seeking work again. It is a side-track to poverty for the remainder of your life, despite the fact that you may be re-employable at some time in the future (possibly due to innovations in technology or changes in the workforce). Additionally, despite the name of the program, not everyone who accepts "disability" (SSDI) is incapable of working. After trade deals like NAFTA, there is a structural change in some industries and regions that qualifies workers in that industry (usually ones where the trade deal is expected to offshore jobs) for "disability" even though their body and mind are perfectly capable of working again. It would be better to give them a UBI-like program which doesn't dis-incentivize them to permanently leave the workforce. We have safety nets like "Section 8" (housing vouchers), "Food stamps" (grocery vouchers), unemployment insurance (UBI-like fixed payments), but each of these is a step function. As soon as you get a job that pays above the cut-off range, you lose the benefits and can have a net loss in purchasing power. A UBI to replace these programs is superior because there would no longer be a penalty for finding a job or making above the cut-off.

kgwgk 10y ago

Or even better, make the minimum wage $150/hour. Why not? Or maybe you are suggesting that it should be lowered? (It's already above the poverty line for an individual in the US.)

thephyber 10y ago

Problem #1: Minimum wage locks some people out of the workforce. If you aren't disabled, but your skills don't rise the value of 2x of the minimum wage (wage + payroll taxes + benefits), then you are locked out of finding any legal work. If you start to raise the minimum wage much higher than it already is, you will start to make some forms or work and some industries economically unfeasible. Problem #2: Disability most definitely does not "work great". If you take disability, you can be charged with a felony for every seeking work again. It is a side-track to poverty for the remainder of your life, despite the fact that you may be re-employable at some time in the future (possibly due to innovations in technology or changes in the workforce). Additionally, despite the name of the program, not everyone who accepts "disability" (SSDI) is incapable of working. After trade deals like NAFTA, there is a structural change in some industries and regions that qualifies workers in that industry (usually ones where the trade deal is expected to offshore jobs) for "disability" even though their body and mind are perfectly capable of working again. It would be better to give them a UBI-like program which doesn't dis-incentivize them to permanently leave the workforce. We have safety nets like "Section 8" (housing vouchers), "Food stamps" (grocery vouchers), unemployment insurance (UBI-like fixed payments), but each of these is a step function. As soon as you get a job that pays above the cut-off range, you lose the benefits and can have a net loss in purchasing power. A UBI to replace these programs is superior because there would no longer be a penalty for finding a job or making above the cut-off.