The Living Wage

As an alternative to the minimum wage, some localities have instituted a "living wage" requirement in which employers must pay a wage designed to ensure low-wage works and their families can live above the poverty level. However, this effort has met with stiff resistance from some interest groups, and generated considerable debate among economists about whether the living wage ordinances are the best form of government intervention to help low wage workers.

Key questions:

• What specifically do "living wage" ordinances call for?
• How is the "living wage" different from the "minimum wage?"
• Who is helped, who is hurt by a living wage requirement?
• What underlying data is used to justify a living wage requirement?
• What are the long run impacts of a living wage requirement?

For overall arguments in favor of the living wage see the liberal think tank Economic Policy Institute (search for living wage) at: http://www.epinet.org/

For overall arguments against the living wage see the conservative think tank National Center for Policy Analysis (search for living wage) at: http://www.ncpa.org/

For more technical economic research opposing the living wage see the Employment Policies Institute at
http://www.epionline.org/index_lw.cfm
For more technical economic research in favor of the living wage see the Political Economy Research Institute at http://wwwx.oit.umass.edu/~peri/html/all.html

Other articles (for and against)

"Living Wage Kills Jobs": at http://www.townhall.com/columnists/thomassowell/ts20031105.shtml

"What's the difference between a living wage and minimum wage?" at http://www.aflcio.org/issues/jobseconomy

Organizations working in favor of the living wage:

Universal Living Wage Campaign http://www.universallivingwage.org/
Living Wage Resource Center (Acorn) http://www.livingwagecampaign.org/

University campus campaign information available at:http://www.campuslivingwage.org/