Unemployment to some degree is functionally a form of a buffer or reserve of labor. Obviously there is also a measure of skill mismatch, lag time, and similiar

Unemployment to some degree is functionally a form of a buffer or reserve of labor. Obviously there is also a measure of skill mismatch, lag time, and similiar as well but lacking a reserve leads to disruptions which interupt growth and advancement. While there is a bias against raising minimium wage there is also a fundamental constraint - if a job can't pay for itself in value generation it isn't sustainable.