Is raising the minimum wage a good tool to help low-income workers achieve upward mobility?

That’s the key question at the heart of the debate over California’s new $20-an-hour minimum wage law for fast food workers. Economist Beth Akers joins host Nic Dunn to discuss the arguments on both sides and explore the unintended consequences of this policy. They explore the impact this new law is having on businesses, articulating a principled approach that’s both pro-free enterprise and pro-upward mobility. Beth is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a contributor to Defending Ideas.

Show notes:

• Beth Akers – Sutherland Institute
• Half a million California workers will get $20 minimum wage, starting today : NPR
• California Restaurants Cut Jobs as Fast-Food Wages Set to Rise – WSJ
• California’s New Minimum Wage Law Will Bring Higher Pay To Fast-Food Workers, Along With Unintended Job Losses (forbes.com)

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, equipping listeners to become more effective champions of sound principle and good policy. Visit defendingideas.org.