Minimum Wage Machine

(2008-2010, updated 2012, and 2016)

Custom electronics, change sorter, wood, plexiglas, motor, misc. hardware, pennies.

(approx. 15 x 19 x 72 inches)



The minimum wage machine allows anybody to work for minimum wage. For as long as they turn the crank, the user is paid in pennies as time passes. For example, if minimum wage is $7.25/hour (the current US Federal rate), then the worker is paid one penny every 4.97 seconds. If they stop turning the crank, they stop receiving money. The machine's mechanism and electronics are powered by the hand crank, and pennies are stored in a plexiglas box. The MWM is reprogrammed as minimum wage changes, or for wages in different locations.