Just as occurred in Seattle when it raised the minimum wage, the city of San Jose has seen its unemployment rate drop and its business revenue increase after the mandatory minimum wage increased.
The minimum wage in San Jose increased from $8.00 an hour to $10.00, and then to $10.15. University of California-Berkeley economist Michael Reich determined that the wage increase affected 70,000 of the city’s 370,000 workers. San Jose restaurants, which Reich says were most impacted by the pay increase, raised menu prices by an average 1.75%. Reich says it resulted in no discernible impact on employment. The unemployment rate in the San Jose metro area, in fact, fell from 7.4% to 5.4%. The number of restaurants in the district increased by 20%.
For more information on this story, click Daily Kos In San Jose, a minimum wage increase and falling unemployment.
