Friends, I need help understanding the logic behind B being the right answer - The question is (and I'm going to focus more between options B and E):
Teenagers are often priced out of the labor market by the government-mandated minimum-wage level because employers cannot afford to pay that much for extra help. Therefore, if Congress institutes a subminimum wage, a new lower legal wage for teenagers, the teenage unemployment rate, which has been rising since 1960, will no longer increase.
Which of the following, if true, would most weaken the argument above?
(B) Since 1960 the teenage unemployment rate has risen even when the minimum wage remained constant.
- Why is this considered to weaken the argument?
- The conclusion of the argument is - if the Congress decides to introduce on a subminimum wage - unemployment rate among teenagers will no longer increase (this does not mean decrease the unemployment rate, it can also suggest that the unemployment rate remains constant)
- What if the legal wage rose to such a level (and thereafter remained constant) that people dont see it fit for hiring teenagers for that wage?
- Say for example the minimum wage turned out to be $10 per hour. What if the employers now see that it is more profitable for the company to hire non teenagers for that money?
- This can explain why teenage unemployment rate increased even though the minimum wage has remained constant
- Therefore, this can advocate for a subminimum wage to be introduced.
- My way of thinking is - for this option to be a weakener, we need to prove that introducing a subminimum wage "might" not (instead of will not) necessarily prevent unemployment rate among teenagers from increasing
(E) The teenage unemployment rate has occasionally declined in the years since 1960.
- This does bring into question whether there can be other factors that can be explored for bringing down teenage unemployment rate
- But that's not what the argument is about. For this option to be a weakener, we need to prove that introducing a subminimum wage "might" not (instead of will not) necessarily prevent unemployment rate among teenagers from increasing
- This option does not point towards that direction. It says there can be other ways of bringing down teenage unemployment rate
- But between this and option B, only this option brings into question whether it is even required to introduce a subminimum wage
Thanks in advance for helping me here!
Debayan