Minimum Wage Should Be Increased?

Right now,according to Victoria Smith,over 40 million people are living in poverty. This could be changed if they were able to get enough money from their jobs, but the minimum wage isn’t high enough right now. Even if only by a little, if minimum wage were raised, the amount of people living in poverty could be reduced by at least 5 million according to Mike Konczal . Originally, the minimum wage was at only .25 cents an hour. Due to causes such as inflation, this wage has been raised to meet the current standard. Although interest in raising the wage has gone away until recently. Minimum wage should be increased because it would increase job growth and economic activity,it would reduce government spending on welfare, and reduce poverty.

When there are millions of Americans living at or below poverty lines, something has to be done. Billion dollar companies and businesses that employ workers, paying them low wages is hurting the economy. The reality is, unless the minimum wage is raised, the cycle will only continue. With higher minimum wages in place, the entire country does better and, therefore, should be raised. There needs to be laws put place to raise the minimum wage. Doing so would boost the economy with all of the money that Americans would put into it. With higher minimum wages, millions of Americans can get out of poverty, not having to rely on the government for assistance such as food stamps, public housing, child care, and health care needs. They can afford better housing options in which they want to live. Communities would see less crimes in neighborhoods creating a safer environment. Aside from that, Americans can afford a good education, health care, as well as healthier eating and exercising habits.

Minimum wage has always been a controversial issue. Many politicians use the argument of minimum wage for their own political propaganda. Some may argue minimum wage should be raised, while others believe it will have detrimental effects on our economy if it is raised. Surprising to most people, minimum wage earners make up only a small percent of American workers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, minimum wage workers make up about 2.8% of all workers in America. “The majority of minimum wage workers are between the ages of 16 and 24. These are high school and college students” (Sherk 2). But high school and college students are not the entire percentage of minimum wage earners. When minimum

This paper will explore the pros and cons of raising the current minimum wage to $15.00. It will start with the history and reasons for the minimum wage. It will cite the positive aspects for raising it, as well as the negative consequences of that action. It will then touch on actual cases presently, within the U.S. economy. Finally, I will present my conclusion.

bills. With a minimum wage job, one will receive about $800 a month, only if

Raising minimum wage has been a battle for many decades and it has always been a battle to raise it. Many families that work for a minimum wage job often have trouble making ends meet because making $8.75 just isn’t enough in this today’s economy. Some jobs are paying $2.13 an hour but this is mostly at restaurants that are family owned but if they don’t make enough on tips they must get paid $7.25 per hour they worked. Although minimum wage has changed dramatically since 1938 when it was $0.25 cents (Kurtz&Yellin) American families simply cannot live on minimum wage. Raising minimum wage should be raised to help families that need it the most.

We all need money. We need it to buy food or to pay for bills in adult life. It is a necessity for us to survive in this world. The minimum wage law was introduced in 1938 during the Great Depression as part of the Fair Labor Standards Act. These laws require employers to pay an employee nothing less than a set amount . The first wage set was 25 cents per hour, and recently in 2009 to $7.25. Congress only raises the minimum wage when the economy is healthy, mainly when there is low unemployment (Sherk). Ultimately they should not increase the federal minimum wage. It hurts the less fortunate, it keeps people below the poverty line and creates unemployment.

The topic on whether the minimum wage should be increased our untouched has been a hot topic in the media and political scene lately. Both the republicans and democrats have spent some big bucks lobbying their insights on the matter. There has been a lot of subjective and objective arguments that are reasonable on both the pros and cons of increasing our national minimum wage. To add to the drama associated with this topic, President Obama endorsed a bill proposing a nearly 40% rise from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour. The President has been campaigning around the country ever since his State of the Union address, pushing congress to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. Many say this is too high due to the costs of enacting such an increase, and many say this is a little low due to the increased cost of living. After looking into both sides of this debate, I realize that overall it would be better for the well-being of our nation to increase the minimum wage due to the short term and long term costs that an increase of the minimum wage could lead to. In terms of helping out the lower class and poor citizens of the United States, increasing the minimum wage level is not the answer.

What if a 16 year old was making $18,000 a year after taxes, working only 25 hours a week? Most likely you would expect that teenager to have a pretty prestigious job at such a young age. However that is not the case, if the minimum wage is raised to $15 an hour, a 16 year old could make $18,000 yearly working only 25 hours a week at McDonalds. Now for teenagers that have goals for college or a car, that would money to set aside for the future, however most 16 year olds do not have those goals in mind yet, so that extra money turns into wasted money. As of February 2016 the minimum wage ranges anywhere from $7.25-$10 across the United States. Florida’s rate is at $8.05 an hour, however some believe the minimum wage should be raised to $15 an hour in all states(Raise).” People working in minimum wage jobs may feel as if this $7 bump would be a great advantage to them, but there are possible negative results of doing this too. As a manager of a restaurant where employees start at minimum wage, I can only imagine the effects our company would feel. Raising the minimum wage is not the solution to helping people out of poverty , I feel it will only be enabling them to stay in the same position they are in and give less motivation for teens to further their generation. Increasing the minimum wage will harm businesses and will decrease the motivation to get a further education.

The current minimum wage in the United States is a wage which Americans cannot live on. Americans are forced to live in poor living conditions because of the low wages they earn. The low wages workers earn result in poor healthcare because they cannot afford the proper treatment. The minimum wage leaves little, if any, for any unexpected expenses. The minimum wage in America affects American workers trying to make ends meet. The minimum wage needs to be raised and changed to the living wage.

If your social media circles are anything like mine, you don’t have to scroll very far down your facebook dashboard before you see a ubiquitously shared, ‘liked’ and commented on post disapproving of raising the federal minimum wage. The post may have a picture of a soldier, a disheveled EMT in the back of an ambulance, or a waving American flag with overlying text stating something to the effect of ‘“Burger flippers” think they should be paid as much as these minimum wages workers? No way!’ If my experience on social media is any indicator, the most popular posts always contain “burger flipper” or “baconator.” Posts like the ones described above make moral judgements about the minimum wage with little evidence for those judgements and the flurry of comments that follow often fail to elucidate the key arguments for either the proponents or opposition of raising the minimum wage. In this paper, I will argue that the federal minimum wage should be increased by assessing both value judgements and pragmatic economic arguments to dispel some of the most well-worn of arguments by those who oppose. I will attempt to prove that the minimum wage is not feasible for meeting workers’ needs while discussing the historical context of the minimum wage, discuss human motivation as related to the minimum wage, and disprove common economic arguments borne of catastrophizing.

Should minimum wage be increase to $15 an hour? That seems to be the million dollar question. Minimum wage is the lowest wage an employee can receive for working. Minimum wage is a contract or legislation by the government or legal authority. How would the increase in minimum wage impact the economy?

I do not think the government should raise the minimum wage. The graph above shows the demand for McDonalds annually. Demand for McDonalds might go down due to increased prices which is no good for the business. They could be forced to hire fewer employees as a result and can lead to worse customer service. This would be even more detrimental to smaller businesses and make it tougher to find employment as a result. Inflation would be the biggest problem. Thus raising minimum wage could be rendered completely ineffective as many prices for goods would go up as a result. The argument that is often made that raising could make the wages more livable for the lower class. Due to increased/inflated prices this would not be the case. Smaller businesses

Since the early 1900s, minimum wage has been a topic of mass discussion in the United States. Back then, the average wage was about .22 cents per hour. Back then, people were rightfully upset with the pay. Hard physical labor deserved higher pay back then…..forward to today, and things are different. People working in fast food, retail, or driving a bus for a few hours every day believe they should earn a LOT more money than they deserve.

“I don’t know of a single economist who disagrees that when you raise the minimum wage, you kill the jobs of the poor,” (Newt Gingrich). Minimum wage is the bare minimum amount of money a person can make while working. Minimum wage was first introduced by the law created in 1938 called the Fair Labor Standards Act. This new law introduced the first minimum wage salary, which was $.25 an hour. Since then, the minimum wage has risen slowly, and today, it averages from $7.25-$10.55 based on the state you live in. The minimum wage has become a controversial topic in the United States today. Many people argue that it should be raised so that people who depend on minimum wage live easier and won’t struggle so much for money. Others see it as if you significantly raise the minimum wage, jobs will be lost and it will hurt the economy. Minimum wage should not be increased because it affects the economy and drastically encourages unemployment.