By Michael Luciano
MEDIAITE
Jun 8th, 2021
During a panel appearance with Austan Goolsbee on Tuesday about whether to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, conservative economist Art Laffer said that some workers just aren’t worth that much.
Fox News anchor Sandra Smith suggested that raising the minimum wage might cause companies to automate some of the jobs currently done by humans. She noted that there are currently 9.3 million job openings in the U.S., which has sparked fears of a worker shortage.
Smith cited the recent foray of McDonald’s into testing voice-ordering technology at 10 of its Chicago restaurants, where only one-fifth of orders need to be taken by humans, according to CEO Chris Kempczinski. He said the automated order-takers have an accuracy rate of about 85%.
During a panel appearance with Austan Goolsbee on Tuesday about whether to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, conservative economist Art Laffer said that some workers just aren’t worth that much.
Fox News anchor Sandra Smith suggested that raising the minimum wage might cause companies to automate some of the jobs currently done by humans. She noted that there are currently 9.3 million job openings in the U.S., which has sparked fears of a worker shortage.
Smith cited the recent foray of McDonald’s into testing voice-ordering technology at 10 of its Chicago restaurants, where only one-fifth of orders need to be taken by humans, according to CEO Chris Kempczinski. He said the automated order-takers have an accuracy rate of about 85%.
Art Laffer Says Most Poor and Minority Workers 'Aren't Worth $15 an Hour
Laffer responded by scoffing at the idea every worker should be making at least $15 an hour.
Yeah, for those people, Sandra, who are coming into the labor force brand fresh –not old-timers who’ve been around for awhile – the poor, the minorities the disenfranchised, those with less education, young people who haven’t had the job experience. These people aren’t worth $15 an hour in most cases.And so therefore when you have a $15 an hour minimum wage, they don’t get that first job, they don’t get requisite the skills to earn above the minimum wage. And after a few years they become unemployable. And after becoming unemployable, they become hostile, and that what you’ll find is happening is this technology has created an underclass of people who are really just bid out of the labor market and will remain out of the labor market for most of their lives. And this I think is just a tragedy. I love the technology but the technology is replacing the jobs for these people. And it’s a killer. It’s a killer for just the people who need the help the most.
Working 40 hours a week for a year for $15 an hour translates to an income of $31,200 before withholdings.
Watch via Fox News.
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