In a survey released this morning, 10 out of 19 economists disagreed that a $15 minimum wage would result in a large increase in unemployment in Ohio. Kevin Egan from the University of Toledo wrote, "There is lots of evidence now from prior minimum wage increases that the impact on employment is small."
One economist who believed that this minimum wage increase would lead to a spike in unemployment was Curtis Reynolds from Kent State. He wrote in his comment “This would be almost 50% higher than the current minimum wage of $10.45. While I would love to see people being paid a higher wage, this almost certainly causes unemployment, at least in the long run. Perhaps that could be offset by phasing it in slowly over time but this is a very large increase. Smaller increases likely would have small unemployment effects and would be justified as research has shown that labor markets are not very competitive (meaning that wages are held below what they would be in a competitive market).”
Additionally, 11 of 19 economists agreed that increasing the minimum wage to $15 per hour would significantly increase the wellbeing of low-income workers. As Faria Huq from Lake Erie College wrote, “Some groups might be hurt due to unemployment, but those that are employed are likely to see an improvement in well being. Increased productivity would also benefit employers.”
The Ohio Economic Experts Panel is a panel of over 40 Ohio Economists from over 30 Ohio higher educational institutions conducted by Scioto Analysis. The goal of the Ohio Economic Experts Panel is to promote better policy outcomes by providing policymakers, policy influencers, and the public with the informed opinions of Ohio’s leading economists. Individual responses to all surveys can be found here.