The gap between what a minimum wage job pays and what it costs to scrape by is covered by government or charity, if they didn't do that the workers would die, which means the jobs don't get done, so that means the resource spent by governments or charities as a result of a low minimum wage is a subsidy for the employer. Instead of paying what it costs they get it for cheaper to create a fiction of "employment".
If anything we should be subsidizing small businesses to give a more level playing field against companies with global economies of scale.
Not without overturning Dodge Bros vs Ford, I believe. The ruling created shareholder primacy, the privilege of shareholders to have maximum bites of the corporate apple. It rigidly protects shareholder (and by ext, executive) interests.
The never-ending wealth that flows from that - first buys politicians, then officials, judges and (eventually) every part of regulation & corporate oversight.
Meanwhile, all raising wages in the current market does is implement a wealth transfer from businesses to landlords with minimum wage workers as the mules transporting the money.
If you let the housing supply remain this tight and just increase wages, you just bid up rents and make the most economically vulnerable fight over the insufficient supply of affordable units.
I take this to mean the assistance covers the gap to prevent death.
I would amend that to note the following: We can exist in a state of profound poverty w/o assistance for a very long time without dying. Persistent Hunger and crisis-level stress kills very indirectly; it commonly takes decades.
source: me + 5 kids. a decade of hunger-level poverty in a red state.
In the US, fast food restaurants are remarkably cheap, which is probably caused by low wages as well. If the workers were paid Danish or Swiss wages, quite a non-trivial part of the US population would be no longer able to afford a visit.
Now there is a wider question if that wouldn't actually improve their health, but that is already a bridge too far from the conversation. Miserly wages of restaurant workers do make the restaurants themselves more affordable to the general public, and the customers seem to be content about it.
A big Mac is still 5 eurodollars.
Requiring companies to pay more than value added by an employee simply fire those workers.
The purpose of govt is to provide assistance, and perhaps training, so those on min wage can gain experience and skills to move up.
Min wage is merely an entrance wage into jobs.