> If there was no minimum wage, they could work $2 an hour of value and then gradually work their way up.
Wouldn't panhandling itself be far more lucrative than this? Based on walking by many beggars every day in a downtown area and seeing people giving them money, I'd estimate most of them make more than minimum wage anyway.
I used to live in London and there were a lot of panhandlers there. It was clear that for some this was their job. Moreso, you just need one little old lady to give em a fiver to beat busting your hump at MacDonalds for an hour (for less, even before taxes).
A lot of panhandlers were (clearly) illegal immigrants. Some had mental health problems.
Whatever the reason there seemed to be a code for the homeless, like not crowding certain areas (basically "territory").
I don't know the details but from an anthropological point of view it's interesting that even the desperate, destitute, mentally ill, drug addicts and illegal immigrants seem to have an innate capacity to self-organize.
Wouldn't panhandling itself be far more lucrative than this? Based on walking by many beggars every day in a downtown area and seeing people giving them money, I'd estimate most of them make more than minimum wage anyway.