system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
What data should I be looking at to know if my state's minimum wage increase is working?

My home state of Illinois is increasing their minimum wage to $15 an hour over the next several years. This is something I generally support, based on studies that I've seen, but all the media coverage I've seen thus far has just been interviewing random restaurant owners who say "It's so bad, we're so broke, etc." without any actual data.  
I'm genuinely curious to see how this has effected the state's economy, so could anyone tell me what data I should be looking at to judge this and how I can desegregate things from just the general economic effects of the pandemic?
gpt
Getting data is a small step in seeing if it's working (assuming you have a clear definition of working).

This is an important question that very smart people have tried to answer for decades. There has been a fair amount of research done on minimum wages' effects and presumably meta-studies as well. I'd start with a lit review.