What America really needs is more small business owners like this.

[pchang]

Income tax withholding means we have SSNs linked to employer tax IDs. Public assistance can collect the family's primary SSN. Correlate the 2 and we can fine companies the cost of public assistance provided to their employees. Companies could pay enough so their employees aren't on public assistance to avoid the fines. Either way, tax payers can stop subsidizing those companies.

[Dinner]

Income tax withholding means we have SSNs linked to employer tax IDs. Public assistance can collect the family's primary SSN. Correlate the 2 and we can fine companies the cost of public assistance provided to their employees. Companies could pay enough so their employees aren't on public assistance to avoid the fines. Either way, tax payers can stop subsidizing those companies.

Honestly, I think this idea is worth taking a closer look at. Like I said, I don't want a minimum wage but there simply must be a policy method to stop corporate free riding. Would there be a negative impact to such a policy? Probably but that impact would probably be less negative than a minimum wage and it might even have a few positive impacts as well. It's kind of picking the lesser of two evils but that's what governance is often about; what does the most good for the least negatives.

[The Mad Monk]

Walmart most certainly doesn't have the right model. Notice how Costco pays workers twice as much yet actually makes far more profit by any reasonable measurement (per employee, per sq ft of retail space, per store, etc...). Even if you just compare Sam's Club (Walmart's members club) to Costco then Costco kills Sam's Club almost 2:1 despite having fewer stores.

They also pick their markets very carefully, and expand much more slowly. Walmart can afford lower profit margins because of the volume they do. If Costco tried to expand in a similar manner they would be in severe difficulty very quickly.

[DaShi]

That really doesn't address Oerdin's point though.