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> But joblessness hit an eight-year high in August of 4.2 percent after the new minimum wage took effect, though it has since improved. Growth was at 2 percent
by whack 8y ago
> But joblessness hit an eight-year high in August of 4.2 percent after the new minimum wage took effect, though it has since improved. Growth was at 2 percent in the third quarter compared with the same period a year earlier, down from 2.8 percent in the second quarter.
A 4.2 percent unemployment rate is remarkably low, and 2% growth in a quarter, isn't bad either.
Increasing taxes and raising the minimum wage is certainly not going to lead to increased economic growth or lower unemployment. The primary benefit of such moves, is to improve the quality of life for the middle-class and lower-middle-class. Neither of which was mentioned in the article, which is surprising considering that's the primary motivation and metric against which it should be measured.
- mactrey 8y agoPresumably that 2% growth is annualized.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- repolfx 8y agoBut 2% annual growth is normal for developed economies. The USA with 4% under Trump is really kicking it and that looks unsustainable. Also I thought economists believed 5% unemployment was something of a lower bound, that there's always a bit of natural unemployment as people move around between jobs - you can't actually ever hit zero. So I'm not sure from these stats why South Korea thinks they have a growth or employment problem. It doesn't look like it. The primary driver of economic growth in advanced economies with stable populations is productivity increases and those come from technological advancement, which isn't going to be much affected by minimum wages.