4 hours and only crickets in response. Whatever minimum wage is set, the market will respond and self correct. During whatever time that takes minimum wage earners will be slightly but temporarily better off. Others will certainly either lose their jobs or not be hired at all. Some businesses will not be started in this state that otherwise would have, other businesses will not move to this state, and perhaps some will even leave this state, all because they perceive the general business climate to be poorer than other alternatives. But we may have more low wage people move (or hitchhike) here hoping to get a better paying minimum wage job, putting more pressure on the supply side of labor, and further burdening our taxpayer paid support system when they find no job. So all this does is put Oregon at a disadvantage to other states in job creation and cost taxpayers more.

Economic realities are like gravity. But defying them seems to make political sense to those currently in power.