What would the effects be of a $10 minimum wage?

A $15 minimum wage for everyone has been on the books for quite a while now, and although it's a very heated topic, I can see why the current minimum wage isn't exactly the most livable wage. I can see why you'd want it.<br><br>I understand that the reasons for a $15 minimum wage are either to combat inflation (as prices rise, the dollar is worth less, the cost of living increases, etc) or to give the working class a livable wage. However, I agree with a lot of people that a $15 minimum wage would create a lot of unintended effects, like:<br><br>* Inflation would increase (as businesses have to pay their employees more, prices for their products and services would increase)<br>* Layoffs (businesses would not be able to afford to pay a $15 per hour minimum wage, especially small businesses. A lot of employees would be laid off.)<br>* Businesses closing/going out of business (like above, businesses wouldn't have the funds to pay all of their employees, they would either have to pay out of pocket to fund their employees, lay some of them off, or close the business entirely.)<br><br>It seems like a $15 minimum wage would have both positive and negative effects. So, if the goal of increasing the minimum wage is to keep up with inflation, and a $15 minimum wage is too high, what would be the effects of a $10 minimum wage? Would this keep up with inflation enough? Would it give the working class a better standard of living, while not causing inflation to rise, businesses to close, or layoffs?<br><br>I'm assuming the answer would be the same as a $15 minimum wage, that it would have positive and negative effects, but not to the degree that a $15 minimum wage would have. If this is the case, then would a $10 minimum wage be a federal, or state-enforced law? Congress should obviously decide whether the federal minimum wage should be $10, or whatever the number is. But if the federal minimum wage was $10, and California had a higher cost of living than Iowa, would it make sense for California to have a higher minimum wage of $15 or whatever they consider to be a livable wage? So, would the federal government decide the minimum wage, or would the states have their own minimum wage laws? Or would the federal government only decide the legal minimum wage, and the states would have a minimum wage above that?<br><br>This is mostly a question post, but I think the biggest source of contention when it comes to a national minimum wage is because different states have different costs of living, so you'd have to figure out how to make the minimum wage high enough to keep up with inflation, low enough to not cause inflation, layoffs, or businesses to close,.account for different states having different costs of living, etc.<br><br>&#x200B;