Articles on labor markets, minimum wage policy, and free-market alternatives
Serious, readable essays on the theory, data, and history behind the debate. Written for educated readers who want the argument made carefully — not shouted.
What Milton Friedman actually argued about the minimum wage
Friedman's case wasn't moral outrage — it was a precise prediction about who gets hurt when wage floors rise above worker productivity. Here's what he said, what the evidence showed, and where the modern debate stands.
Minimum wage vs. EITC: two very different ways to help low-income workers
One raises the cost of hiring. The other rewards the hire. What the structural difference means for policy — and why the best answer may be a mix.
Read the article →The first job ladder: why entry-level work matters
Lifetime earnings are built on the first rung. When wage floors eliminate entry-level jobs, they don't just affect today's paycheck — they break a pipeline.
Read the article →A state-by-state guide to minimum wage laws in 2026
From $7.25 to $17.95, America's minimum wage patchwork is its own natural experiment. How to read the map — and what it does and doesn't tell us.
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