The minimum wage is both an economic and social benefit to the nation. Acceptance of such a concept leads me to conclude an insufficient minimum wage rate does no good and (if it's extremely insufficient), probably harmful to our nation.
(I would suppose that an excessive minimum wage would do no good and possibly be harmful to the nation. I haven't determined exactly why or how. I'm unaware of that such a condition ever existed within any nation's history. I'm supposing that's due to political hindrances).
Eliminating our nation's minimum wage would decrease the nation's median wage. The minimum wage affects lower income rates more and higher income rates less but it is the foundation of all the nation's labor compensation. The minimum wage is very much less a cause of inflation. It is much more a victim of the decreasing U.S. dollar's value.
Whenever the USA's minimum wage rate has been increased, it was never a generous rate. Due to inflation our minimum wage's purchasing powers have always decreased to become more insufficient. Congress should pass a minimum wage law that's indexed. Similar to Social Security benefits, the minimum wage should be periodically adjusted to relate to perceptible changes of the dollar's purchasing power.
I'm opposed to dependence upon government discretion. At present the U.S. Congress determines when and to what extent the federal minimum wage should be increased. It would be preferable that the minimum wage should be indexed in the same manner as we now index social security benefits.
Any reference to finite dollars within a regulation insures the purpose of that regulation will be somewhat deformed. The extent of that deformation is dependent upon the finite amounts relative to the regulations purpose, and the change in the value of the U.S. dollar.
In regard to income taxes for example, this policy could have made a good portion of modified tax regulations unnecessary. Those modifications were to remedy inequities that occurred due to references to finite dollars; (e.g. tax bracket finite amounts, fines, penalties, and caps on amounts). Due to the referencing finite dollars we've created layers of inequity remedies to cover other layers remedies. We could have had much less. much simpler and much more equitable tax regulations if we had not referred to finite dollars when drafting laws and regulations.
Three states have made provisions to keep their minimum wages abreast to the inflated value of the U.S. dollar. Within those states the minimum is unlikely to ever again be a political issue. It is even less likely to ever be a successful political issue.
Permit the statisticians rather than congress's politicians to determine all future modifications of minimum wage rates.