It’s one thing to talk about raising the minimum wage in theory. It’s quite another to actually put it into practice.
Vice President Joe Biden learned a little about that contradiction Monday in Las Vegas. Biden led a lunchtime round table discussion at a Mexican restaurant on raising the national minimum wage to $10.10 per hour. The current federal rate is $7.25 and Nevada’s rate is $8.25 if the company doesn’t provide health care coverage.
Biden’s main selling point was that said raising the minimum wage would not cost jobs and would pump $19 billion into the economy.
“All of this is disposable income, and it gets straight into the economy,” Biden said, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal. “It’s about time we do something. Minimum wage hasn’t kept up.”
But while the guests agreed with his sentiment, they questioned whether the Obama administration had actually thought about the real impact on small businesses.
“Everybody should make at least $10.But it’s not so easy because, see, we’re not talking $10.10, after you pay taxes and FICA and everything, I mean, we’re talking like $15,” Javiar Barajas, owner of Lindo Michoacan restaurant said.
Barajas also said that in a town like Vegas most workers make tips and he would like to see a more comprehensive system for tip-earning workers.
“Right now it’s very hard for a small business to make it, and everybody knows,” he continued.
Watch his exchange with Biden below:
