Living Wage: What is that?

I never ceased to be amazed by what progressives think is good policy (from the Progressive Pulse):

Maryland approved the first-in-the-nation living wage bill. HB430, sponsored by Del. Herman Taylor, requires state contractors to pay employees a living wage. The bill creates a two-tier system: wages in urban areas will be at least $11.30 per hour; wages in rural areas will be at least $8.50 per hour. Maryland’s minimum wage is the same as North Carolina’s, $6.15 per hour.

A "living wage" may ring true to some. Alas, it’s bad economics.  It doesn’t help the poor, and it places marginal employees back on the dole. I’ve written about this elsewhere in an Examiner piece I think explains the backwardness of this, one of the left’s favorite false idols.