The poorest people are not the ones working minimum wage full-time. However, the poorest do want to purchase take-out. Increasing the minimum for fast food realistically helps a pretty minute demographic of workers, but the carry-over cost to consumers means that poor people can afford less fast food.
Maybe that's not such a bad thing, but if it's meant to help the poor (who either earn nothing or earn much less consistently) it's pretty ineffectual at it, particularly when accounting for differences in cost-of-living, and the types who typically work minimum wage fast food in particular. Walk into a McDonalds and you'll mostly see students and immigrants, that's not "the poor". "Livable" needn't arbitrarily mean a spacious 1-bedroom apartment either, which is why migrants paid below-market wages don't worry about rent.
Cash transfers and other schemes are better. We already do that to a small extent and could just expand it.
Edit: should clarify, it's a balancing act because a higher main wage on net can be beneficial, but after a certain level will lead to undesirable effects
If unemployment insurance and state fmla pay are any indication, any cash payments will be driven into the same laggy rough to navigate bureaucracy by the coalition between the people who like being cruel to poor people and the people who think insurance is some kind of handout.
That doesnt follow. We already have welfare/handouts and it idnt hard to navigate, some people just need guidance doing so, which is available. 90% of people living on the street have a) a bank account and b) a smartphone
You also need an address that isn’t a P.o. box or a post office. Everyone I’ve talked to who has gotten unemployment or welfare compares keeping it to a part time job.
Maybe that's not such a bad thing, but if it's meant to help the poor (who either earn nothing or earn much less consistently) it's pretty ineffectual at it, particularly when accounting for differences in cost-of-living, and the types who typically work minimum wage fast food in particular. Walk into a McDonalds and you'll mostly see students and immigrants, that's not "the poor". "Livable" needn't arbitrarily mean a spacious 1-bedroom apartment either, which is why migrants paid below-market wages don't worry about rent.
Cash transfers and other schemes are better. We already do that to a small extent and could just expand it.
Edit: should clarify, it's a balancing act because a higher main wage on net can be beneficial, but after a certain level will lead to undesirable effects