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Increased wages also drives more automation. For critical goods like food, that's what would replace those workers if their labour value is below minimum wage,
by naasking 5y ago
Increased wages also drives more automation. For critical goods like food, that's what would replace those workers if their labour value is below minimum wage, and they would have to move into positions that can pay better. That's arguably better than leaving them in poverty working below a living wage.
- nyhc99 5y agoIf those people could move into positions that can pay better, they already would have done so, no? Eliminating their jobs through automation isn't going to get them promoted, it's going to get them fired and unemployed
- naasking 5y ago> If those people could move into positions that can pay better, they already would have done so, no? No, because those positions pay the same as what they're currently getting, but not how much they would pay with a higher minimum wage. The context is that a person's current position is unprofitable under a higher minimum wage, but other positions would not be, thus their wage ends up boosted even if it means getting a new position. Furthermore, targeted automation has tended to increase employment in other industries, historically.