Minimum Wage Machine (Work in Progress) (2008-2010)
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. Turning the crank will yield one penny every 4.11 seconds, for $8.75 an hour, or NY state minimum wage (2015). If the participant stops 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 can be reprogrammed as minimum wage changes, or for wages in different locations.
A copy of the Minimum Wage Machine made in 2013 by students in FACT's Young People's Program, with help from the Freehand Group, Liverpool, UK.