Is raising Missouri’s minimum wage to $15 per hour a good idea? Supporters of Proposition A, the minimum wage initiative on Missouri’s November ballot, clearly think so. But decades of economic research on the topic tell a different story.
If Missouri voters approve Proposition A, the state’s minimum hourly wage will increase from $12.30 (the current minimum wage in Missouri) to $13.75 in 2025, and then to $15 in 2026. This is nearly double the state’s 2018 minimum wage of $7.85 and would tie Missouri with Illinois and Nebraska for the highest minimum wage among surrounding states.
Proponents of Proposition A argue there’s little consensus among academics on the effects of raising the minimum wage. Further, they suggest that adopting the minimum wage proposal in Proposition A would increase affected Missourians’ earnings by more than $1,000 per…
