In order for a Minimum Wage worker in MA to be able to afford housing, they would have to work over 100 hours per week at $8.00/hour. The National average annual salary for an American worker employed full-time is $49,700. Something wrong here, ya think?

These are unnecessary and counter-productive ideas that continue the pattern of liberal over regulation that strangles small business development and growth and hurts those it purports to help. Who works for minimum wage?? High School kids. Counter help. Retail. You have to start somewhere.....If the minimum wage is raised, (based on the absurd notion that you should be able to raise and support a family on the salary from ANY job), there will be less jobs and less kids hired. So who have you helped??

The equal pay act for women is a cure without a problem and a gift to trial attorneys. We already have anti-discrimination statutes which include such complaints. This is yet another vehicle for litigation even though studies show that women in identical jobs with the same seniority warm MORE than their male counterparts. If women make less statistically, it is generally because of gaps in their work history, (often for child rearing), or because the jobs are not identical.

i can see how well intentioned people might think these are good ideas at first glance. They are not.

Ms Kendricks hits the nail on the head. This type of thing does not have the intended effect, it just kills jobs for teens. Who seriously believes that every job has to pay enough to buy a house? Everyone starts somewhere and it's usually at minimum wage. Thank God for those summer and High school jobs. And if you are still making minimum wage when you have completed whatever training and school you plan to then you have not tried very hard or you are limited in your ability.

Marcy and Whitney are exactly right. Some jobs are not worthy of "a living wage". If every job paid enough to cover the cost of living, I would quit my stressful construction job. That's right, I'm going to get a job at one of those carts in the middle of the mall, where the inside temperature is always just right and pleasant elevator music plays in the background as I people watch all day.
I voted for Joan, but I hope Joan will tackle more substantive issues and not just feel-good issue that sound really nice on the surface, but accomplish very little. Anti-discrimination statutes already exist. Joan, don't take the predictable, politically correct route, you're more talented than that.