DiMasi Challenger Opposes Minimum Wage Increase

Kenneth J. Procaccianti, the 23-year-old candidate for State Representative against Speaker Salvatore DiMasi, came out today against the legislature’s proposal for the nation’s highest minimum wage increase. “Although receiving such a raise would be a positive for those low-income workers who are fortunate enough to receive it, the timing of such a law could not be worse.” Procaccianti says on his blog. “Once again, the leaders in the state legislature have proven that their understanding of economic theory is severely lacking and they continue to repel businesses from Massachusetts.”

Increasing the minimum wage would increase costs for small businesses, and Procaccianti says this is certainly not the time to be putting more burden on small businesses.

“Increasing the minimum wage doesn’t just adversely affect employers. When costs are increased for small businesses, they hire less people. Thus, less people will have jobs and less people will benefit from the minimum wage increase. And to do so in this type of economic environment, the results could be even worse.”

In a time where businesses are leaving Massachusetts due to high taxes, it is unconscionable that the legislature would consider doing something that will hurt the small businesses that are here. It certainly won’t bring new workers here, and minimum wage workers who get let go are will have an even more difficult time finding a new job, and may have to leave themselves.

Procaccianti asks, “How will Massachusetts ever shed the reputation of being anti-business if our lawmakers continue to propose such policy?”

I have no idea. I’m glad Procaccianti is running. He clearly understands what needs to be done to get this state back on track.

Matt Margolis is co-author (with Mark Noonan) of Caucus of Corruption: The Truth About The New Democratic Majority. He also blogs at The Buffalo Bean. Follow Matt on Twitter.

One Response to “DiMasi Challenger Opposes Minimum Wage Increase”

1. David F. Prenatt, Jr. says:

   July 1, 2006 at 9:29 pm

   Quite surprisingly, libertarian economist Steve Landsburg argues quite convincingly that the minimum wage is not the big job killer that most economists believe it to be. Nonetheless, since over two thirds of minimum wage earners do not actually live in poverty, the Earned Income Tax Credit is a much more effective and equitable method of helping the working poor.