When a municipality wants to do good by boosting gig worker pay, it discovers there could be unintended consequences.
While the minimum wage economic debate tends to look at floors and job loss, instead it also needs a cost-of-living focus.
Through its twice-yearly Big Mac Index, The Economist shows us what we can learn locally and globally from burger economics.
Traveling around the United States, you would see a minimum wage that varied from state to state and among different cities.
As New York's hourly minimum wage started heading toward $15 while Pennsylvania's remained at $7.25, some of the results were surprising.
Just like tipping wages vary from state to state, so too do arguments from servers, kitchen staff, and restaurant owners for keeping or eliminating them.
Although wage growth may be accelerating, a look at the U.S. and also at Amazon's recent announcement reflects the disparities.
Sometimes surprising and usually unpredictable, the reasons we tip make the tipping wage a controversial paycheck minimum.










