The United States of America has been known to be the land of opportunities for centuries; however, times have changed. While some can find great success in America, these are the lucky few, others have to face the struggles of the everyday living in the United States. There are multiple issues with the overall United states, such as the government, welfare programs, and the American economy; there are also problems with the people who live in the United States. The lifestyle of some Americans is also a large problem. People in the United States are very self centered as a whole, especially the upper class and upper middle class of Americans. Without change, little can be done to help American grow and prosper to become a great nation. The …show more content…
There are also families who apply for financial aid without working or having their benefits taxed. These families are able to apply for Section 8 subsidies, which allows them to live in privately owned housing, making the lowest possible rent payments, while the government pays the rest. (Mathews KHON2). People working on minimum wage can barely afford even the cheapest homes or apartments available to them. In Hawaii, the cost of living is much higher than other states, which is why the welfare benefits are so high.
Many people in the state argue that raising the minimum wage would decrease the number of people who receive welfare benefits; however, there are many side effects of raising the minimum wage. Along with the wages being higher, there would also be a large increase in taxes, social security, workman’s compensation, as well as the unemployment compensation. Small businesses would suffer greatly from the wage increase. Small towns or cities would see a sharp increase in prices for food, housing, as well as for services. Raising minimum wage could also possibly create more unemployment to make up for lost
Raising minimum wage would affect teenage workers. With younger adults and teenagers finishing up school, about half look for a job, while some don’t want to or have other plans such as going to college. If minimum wage were to be increased, it would make more people want to get a job. Increasing minimum wage would put more money in consumer’s pockets to spend in stores; therefore, stores would require more staff. Teenagers would have more money which would enable them to apply more funds towards their education to improve themselves. Supporters feel if people are going to get paid more, they would want to get a job. An increase in your pay would increase the consumer rate of purchasing things, and would require more staff due to more customers since they have more money to purchase things. According to Economic Policy Institute, “Over three-quarters 3.4 million of the affected workers were adults age 20 or older. The other 1.1 million workers were teenagers, age 16-19. Despite the relatively small number of affected teens, this nevertheless represents a large share, 19.9%, of all teen workers.” (Heidi Shierholz). Those who oppose believe that increasing minimum wage would cause prices of products and services to increase rapidly and cause people to limit their spending. As prices go up,
Minimum wage has caused controversy throughout history between the two parties in government, the Democrats and Republicans, debating if they should increase minimum wage or not. Minimum wage was first established during 1938 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt (Sessions). The first act to enforce employers to pay its employees is the Fair Labor Standards Act which followed the Social Security Act (Sessions). Minimum wage started as twenty-five (25) cents per hour which doesn’t seem like a lot, but it was at that time (Sessions). The United States tended to raise the minimum wage when the standard of living changed. Since 1938, two other amendments were created to increase minimum wage laws even more. By 1961, minimum wage raised to $1.15 with another increase in 1963 (wages). Since the 1963 wage change, minimum wage created a trend of increasing yearly or every other year (Wages). From 2007 to 2009 minimum wage increased each year making the current minimum wage $7.25 (wages). Sine minimum wage has been established, Congress has increased minimum wage twenty-two times (22) (). Since minimum wage is supposed to change when the standard of living changes, then why hasn’t the United States government changed it since 2009?
Should the minimum wage be raised? This question is the question being asked by millions across the United States. Most people will say yes, however, an economist will most likely say no. This is a very important subject and what the people of the United States should be compelled to notice as well as take action on the minimum wage. In the United States, 3 million people make less than the federal minimum wage. Furthermore, with over 60 million people living in the lower middle class the minimum wage is not high enough. That's why the minimum wage should be raised to $15 an hour because CEO's support it as well as it presents a living wage.
For example, many people believe that it would act as an economic stimulus for the country. If the minimum wage were to increase, that would allow for people to have more money, and in turn they would spend more money at businesses, boosting the nations economy.20 However, it would also benefit the government by decreasing the amount of people enrolled in government programs such as Medicaid and food stamps.21 As stated in an article published in Congressional Digest, “The President’s plan strengthens the middle class by making America a magnet for jobs, equipping every American with the skills they need to do those jobs, and ensuring hard work leads to a decent living,”22 this, directly relating to a statement the President made in his State
In the United States alone, the amount of people in poverty is 14.5%. That equates to 45.3 million people in 2013. In a country like America, one of the world’s superpowers, it’s embarrassing to admit. But the main issue is to fix issues like these with the minimum wage and welfare. The minimum wage applies to workers who got a job whether because they were in school or because they had not gone to college and had no other option. Most of the country lives off as minimum wage workers as only 1% of the world’s population has a college degree. Minimum wage needs to be adjusted to modern inflation. But the minimum wage allegedly does not affect poverty at all says a large demographic and does not need to be adjusted. The minimum wage makes up a lot of the country and should be adjusted or modified to today’s standard of living.
The minimum wage in the United States has been an ongoing controversy for many years now. The first minimum wage was established in 1938 (Reich, 2015, P. 3). That minimum wage started out at .25 cents an hour; compared to today’s higher wage of a government standard of $7.25 an hour. Many people believe that the minimum wage should be more so that those who live below the poverty level in the United States will decrease, however in many other people’s opinions the minimum wage should be the same. The minimum wage should stay the same at a low $7.25.
In “The minimum wage: To raise it or not to raise.” Mike Patton explains the negative effects of raising it. He addresses the various consequences this change would lead to the society in a long-term scenario. Even though protestors believe that the best choice they have to improve their economic situation is to get a higher wage, this action would lead not only to atrocious but perilous complications. It is undeniable that we are always seeking for an improvement in our economy but the issue of increasing the minimum wage cannot be discussed without considering the negative outcome of this tremendous change.
The federal minimum wage is a clearly defined wage that must be paid by businesses to their employees. Failure to accommodate the federal minimum wage is violation of federal law and punishable by the Wage and Hour Division of the United States Department of Labor. Debate over the minimum wage rate has been revived in recent years, largely due to President Barack Obama’s belief that the minimum wage should be increased. Currently the minimum wage stands at $7.25 per hour. The minimum wage is $2.13 for a worker who receives tips, assuming that the wage with tips amounts to at least the federal minimum wage. There appears to be a fairly even split in those who believe the wage should be increased and those who believe it should not change; this would be the reason debate over the issue
"No family gets rich from earning the minimum wage. In fact, the current minimum wage does not even lift a family out of poverty."
Minimum wage is for workers in the statutory working hours or labor contracts to signed by the working time, and agreed to provide the normal labor under the premise of the employer should be paid according to the minimum labor remuneration. With the development of an economy, the minimum wage has become the people's social security system, to protect the workers and their family members of the basic of life, to maintain the labor force
Minimum wages go all the way back to 1938, during the great depression, when the stock market crash and bank loan were failing. Families need income of some type, were they wanted to make it fair were individual could get pay the same without a college degree. I am going to start off with a little about minimum wages history and how this could help our Economic.
During the course of providing HACCP training certification classes, we hear many MN certified food managers discussing how a rising minimum wage may impact their businesses. This is a hotly debated issue, especially in light of recent attempts to place a 15 dollar minimum wage initiative on the upcoming November ballot in the city of Minneapolis. Recently, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that a minimum wage increase cannot be legally raised by the voters, but must be established by the city council. Even so, since the food service industry hires a high-number of minimum wage workers, we felt it beneficial to briefly explore the issue.
I agree with this article, written by Niels Veldhuis, to the extent that minimum wage negatively affects the economy, by increasing unemployment. However, if I were Veldhuis I would have added that the social values of minimum wage may outweigh the negative effects on the economy. This matter is a value judgement, which cannot be proved right or wrong by economics. Veldhuis supports his statement with proof from studies; I will explain these findings with further microeconomic theory. I will discuss the following to reflect upon the accuracy of his arguments: theories of producer behavior and cost minimization, market equilibrium, welfare, and the importance of value judgements.
The national minimum wage was introduced in the UK in April 1999 by the Labour government. Essentially it formed a major part of their manifesto as it convinced the average population that Labour were beneficial for everybody. However, they would argue against classical economics and suggest there are wide spread benefits to be gained. The main argument is that the NMW would alleviate poverty across the country.
Debates about the wisdom of hiking minimum wage levels are stuck in a rut. Opponents say higher minimum wages kill jobs, while supporters maintain that higher minimums reduce poverty and spur consumer spending, benefitting everyone. Many if not most economists believe both arguments to be true: higher minimum wages do indeed cost some jobs, but they also raise the standard of living for large portions of the population.