I am not a traveler and really have never lived anywhere besides Ohio. But, where I come from only the people who "WANT/have no choice" to make minimum make minimum wage. I like to call those jobs High School/retirement jobs. Where people either can not work jobs(under 18 and in school) or they have to limit their salary (retirees). NOBODY where I live could live on minimum wage and I live in a LOW LOW cost of living are of the US. They would have to raise the min wage to well over $9 an hour to even constitute making a living where I live let alone somewhere like LA or NYC. Poverty in the US is way out of wack. Tell me how someone who only makes $21k a year can support a family of 4? That is like $250 a week after taxes.
You want to know how? GOV assistance. There are people (again in my area) choose to be on Gov assistance and not work. Hell they make a living from it and for some reason have no shame in it what so ever. IMHO Gov assistance should be just that short term assistance for families in need not a perm lifestyle we pass on generation after generation.
The gov should focus on fixing Walfare 1st and fix that....