If pay had kept pace with productivity gains, minimum wage would be $24 an hour
Minimum wage is a threshold for _not_ paying salary (if a candidate is not skillful enough to earn at least a minimum wage -- that worker cannot get a job).<p>Minimum wage is bad for workers. Increasing minimum wage hurts low-skilled workers even more. Which is a cruel thing to do, especially for a programmer who earns significantly more and is not affected by minimum wage.