Groundbreaking: Chicago Orders Megastores to Raise Min. Wage

We touched on this topic, nimh, a few days ago in another thread (the increasingly nasty one re immigration). I didn't comment about this there because the thread has long since degenerated into a bunch of personal attacks back and forth. But, here are my thoughts:
1) The Chicago ordinance, if signed into law, will be challanged in court and I think it will be struck down.
2) The issue here may overtly be the minimum wage/living wage thing. But lurking under that are the unions' interest and also, I would add, the folks who are tilting at the windmill of the "wal-martization" of America.
3) The US Congress got into this on Friday. Some Republicans indicated that they might be willing to see a gradual increase in the Federal Minimum Wage over a several year timeframe but only if the inheritance tax on rich people was repealed immediately. Talk about handing an election issue to the Dems!

Anyway, I am a liberal who believes in the concept of a minimum wage/living wage. I also am a small business owner (retailer; 35 employees). And I know a bit about economics.

btw, the mob in Chicago is just pressing for a raise.

It's a nice idea, but the idea of one place having to pay a higher minimum wage than a place next door might have difficulty getting through the courts.

In a related development, Connecticut is raising a cry because Wal-Mart doesn't pay medical benefits, and the employees' paychecks are so small that the state ends up subsidizing the employees' medical care.

Well, in one of the bits I snipped for brevity, the article adds:

A legal brief prepared recently for the Illinois Retail Merchants Association said the bill would violate equal protection guarantees in the Constitution, but a legal analysis by the Brennan Center at New York University said there was ample precedent for selective imposition of minimum wages by size of business.

If the chicago city government wants to raise the minimum wage, they should do so. Otherwise, they should piss off and leave the business community alone.

I listened to this story last week on the radio....I'll be reading this thread with interest.

I don't understand how seemingly intelligent people always fall for this crap. Last time they tried this in Chicago, Walmart simply moved out of the lower income neighborhood they planed to build in which was inside city limits and into the business friendly city next door. All that was accomplished was the people who could use the low prices and jobs that Walmart provides got nothing... not even the "non-living wage" jobs.

It isn't Walmart's responsibility (or any other retailer for that matter) to provide salary to raise a family of 4 for being a door greeter. It is called a minimum wage job for a reason. It is an unskilled job that anybody over the age of 16 could do with relative ease.

The minimum wage scam does nothing but raise prices and screw with the market.

The Brennan Center is the Brennan Center for "Justice"..........there isn't much doubt their analysis of this matter is skewed in favor of the city. I would love to hear some of their precedents for this. This will eventually eat up more money in attorney and court time than it is worth to the workers.