Analyze the impact of an increase in the minimum wage from the current level to $15 per hour. How would the following be affected?
a. employment of people previously earning less than $15 per hour
b. the unemployment rate of teenagers
c. the availability of on-the-job training for low-skilled workers
d. the demand for high-skilled workers who are good substitutes for low-skilled workers
Review the mechanics of price floors and price ceilings. Why does a price floor lead to surpluses? Why does a price ceiling lead to shortages? Review consumer and producer surplus. A price floor will lead to a transfer of consumer surplus to producer surplus; a price ceiling will lead to a transfer of producer surplus to consumer surplus; both price regulations lead to deadweight losses, which is a loss of surplus to society. Why?
