NEW: Minimum Wage Hike Will Cost 200 Teen Jobs, Group Says
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
The Rhode Island Center for Freedom and Prosperity is projecting that teens will see 200 fewer jobs this year as a result of the minimum wage hike.
The General Assembly raised the state minimum wage by 35 cents to $7.75.
Rhode Island's teen unemployment rate in 2011 (28.3%) is already 3.4 percentage points higher than the national average of 24.9%. The minimum wage increase will make this discrepancy even worse.GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST
The data, which will be part of a more comprehensive teen employment report the Center plans to release in July, is "yet another example of the death-by-a-thousand-cuts syndrome that is depressing our state's growth," said Mike Stenhouse, CEO for the Center. Continual small increases in taxes and regulations are often implemented for compassionate reasons, but it is the contention of the Center that the cumulative effect of these polices has been devastating for area businesses, for the state's economy, and especially for those seeking work.
"Imagine that because of this minimum wage increase two hundred more Rhode Island teens are not going to have the chance to earn a paycheck, to learn important business skills, or to build their personal résumés," concluded Stenhouse.
