Persuasive Essay On Minimum Wage

Before people push a minimum wage increase, they need to be totally aware of all of the positive and negative results and consequences that might occur as a result. The issue concerning what to do about the minimum wage has served as an ongoing controversy amongst several people. The federal minimum wage should not be raised for several reasons including the harmful effect on small businesses, the increase of poverty, and the augmentation of competition for jobs.

One of the most talked about subjects in the U.S economy is the topic of minimum wage. With president Obama’s increase in the minimum wage to 10.10$ per hour people, both economists and politicians alike, have been debating whether raising the bar is a smart idea. At a time when the country the country’s inflation continues to rise at a steady pace and Americans are constantly working to feed their families, some economists know that a raise in the minimum wage would help elevate some of the difficulty. The last time the federal minimum wage was raised was in July of 2009, where rose from 6.55$ to 7.25$. However, there are plenty of reasons as to why the wage should be raised. Some may not think it, but raising the

On the negative side of the equation, 500,000 Americans would lose their jobs” (Williams). In the same article economist Thomas Sowell stated “the net economic effect of the minimum wage laws is to make less skilled, less experienced or otherwise less desired workers more expensive – thereby pricing many of them out of jobs” (Williams). Although that could possibly be true, research from the Department of Labor from the 13 states that have raised the minimum wage earlier this year are showing faster job growth than the states that have done nothing. The findings show the 13 states that raised the minimum wage as gaining an average of .85% while the other 37 states only show .61% growth (Frizell). As John Schmitt, senior economist at the liberal Center for Economic and Policy Research states “it raises serious questions about the claims that a raise in the minimum wage is a jobs disaster”

Although America is known as the richest country in the world, 43 million of its citizens are in poverty. Unfortunately, some of them work full time, yet are still in poverty due to the low minimum wage (“Should We Raise”). In 1928, the first federal minimum wage of 25 cents per hour was set by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to prevent workers from being underpaid. Since 2009, the federal minimum wage has been $7.25 (Smith). The age old debate of whether or not to raise it is still going on in the US. The federal minimum wage should be increased to keep up with inflation, help support the poor, and stimulate the economy.

Imagine spending your day with lights, sirens, blood, and death. Imagine having someone’s life in your hands every time you go to work. Then imagine working 24 hour shifts only to return home and sleep for a few hours before returning to your second job and doing it all over again just so you can provide for your family. This is the life of emergency medical technicians across the country and many others like them. Now imagine that the teenager next door that work at the local fast food chain makes the same amount of money as you do. Due to the current minimum wage increases being seen across the country, this is being becoming the reality in this country. The increase of the current minimum wage is targeted to help individuals in low paying

“A 15 percent increase in the minimum wage nationwide would destroy about 290,000 to 590,000 young people's jobs, and about 400,000 to 800,000 jobs overall” (Henderson, David R). Due to the Fair labor Standards act, the federal minimum wage, or the lowest you can pay an employee for work, currently stands at $7.25 an hour. Although a number of Americans think that raising the minimum wage would benefit our country, it would actually bring a number of problems to our economy, such as a rise in job loss and high school dropout.

Since the discussion of the raise in minimum wage has been popular for some time now, it is a topic frequently discussed by politicians. One politician who has a strong opinion about the topic, is Bernie Sanders. Sanders feels that there are millions of Americans who are working for an inadequate wage. He believes that the current minimum wage is “starvation pay” and that $15 an hour is needed. By raising the wage, it will also be possible to establish an equal pay for women and other minorities (Sanders 1). In an article for PBS, Simone Pathe reminds those doing research on the topic that each piece of data can be seen in either a positive or a negative way depending on the way they are portrayed in the piece. In many articles, it is argued that minimum wage workers are generally under the age of 25. In this article, Pathe finds through the Economic Policy Institute that the average age of minimum wage workers is 35 and a full-time worker. This group of minimum wage workers would be those who are helped by raises in minimum wage, with 88% of this population over 20 years old. Another advantage that Pathe finds with the minimum wage raise is the economic benefits that would follow. Studies find that it would be better for businesses if minimum wage workers had more money. A raise to $10 per hour would

Minorities and unskilled employees fall victim to this idea more than others as well. Any intelligent employer, when having a tight limit on how many new employees they are able to hire, would pick the applicants that are faster, better, and more skilled. Since minimum wage paying jobs are intended to be shorter term, entry-level jobs, young teens, who honestly need the work experience more than they need the money, suffer the most. Contrary to what most advocates believe, 58.7 percent of minimum wage earners are teens (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). Having an entry level, low-skill job is an

A 2014 study found that raising the minimum wage in California to $13 per hour would “significantly benefit health and well-being.” Another 2014 study by the Bay Area Regional Health Inequities Initiative found minimum-wage workers are more likely to report poor health, suffer from chronic diseases, and be unable to afford balanced meals. Moreover, Minnesota State Health Commissioner Edward Ehlinger stated that raising the minimum wage in Minnesota from $6.15 to $9.50 “the biggest public health achievement... in the four years I've been health commissioner... If you look at the conditions that impact health, income is right at the top of the list... Anything we can do to help enhance economic stability will have a huge public health benefit. This is a major public health issue.” A minimum wage raise would also have a positive impact on education, increasing attendance and decreasing dropout rates. Teens who live in poverty are twice as likely to miss three or more days of school per month as opposed to those who are not. Also, although some teens work for extra spending money, in low-income areas, many work to support their whole family. This would allow them to work fewer hours for the same amount, thus providing for more time to dedicate to schoolwork. A 2014 study by the Assistant Professor of Economics at West Point stated that an increase to $10.10 would lead to a 2-4% decrease in the chance of a low-socioeconomic status teenager dropping out. Finally, another study by the President’s Council of Economic Advisors said raising the minimum to $12 by 2020 would result in a 3-5% decrease in crime and thus a societal benefit of up to $17 billion

The minimum wage should not be increased, because an increased minimum wage is harmful to the American worker. In a 2007 article by David R. Henderson a professor of economics at the Naval Postgraduate School, fellow at the domestic policy think tank ,the Hoover institution, and author of Making Great Decisions in Business and Life, found that most working people in the United States are not effected by any legislation about the minimum wage because their pay is already

That can result in fewer jobs for Americans and cause the rivalry to be more intense. Marina Krakovsky stated, "… leaders at an increasing number of companies are … opting to raise minimum pay, either to stay competitive in today's tight labor market or out of a growing recognition that few people can make ends meet on the current federal minimum" (32). Higher skilled employees will be competing for the best minimum wage positions, but it will knock unexperienced workers out of the picture, and their opportunities and resume slots will be slim for the future. Based on the information in Sander and Johnson's article, it exclaimed, "in 2015, … 1.6% of American workers earned the minimum wage, and … [most workers were] under the age of 25. [No individual should be] deprived of obtaining a … position that represents the first rung on their personal ladder to success" (Sanders 23). Inflation will keep getting higher and more difficult to handle, and products will become more expensive as time goes by. Living off of minimum wage to support a family is already tough

“Economist have stated that the value of the minimum wage was at its highest in the 1960’s; since then, it has been outpaced by the cost of living, leading to a serious decline in wage value” (Pacitti). “An Analysis by the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning research organization, suggests that raising the federal minimum wage to $9.80 would increase pay for more than 28 million Americans, increase the gross domestic product by more than $25 billion and create the equivalent of more than 100,000 full-time jobs” (Greenhouse). Just five years after the worst of the financial collapse is over, an increase in jobs and pay by that amount would substantially increase our economy, those who earn more, spend

Another reason for the opposition of a rise in the minimum wage is that it may result in more high school drop-outs (Kasperkevic). However, raising the minimum wage does not significantly reduce the employability of youths or nor does it affect the school enrollment rate. In 1990, the minimum wage was raised increased by 13% and there was no notable drop in youth employment rates (Cards). Minimum wage should be increased to match the current economic status since the cost of living has been on the rise yet low income employees receive the same salary they were receiving during better economic times.

Higher labor costs have a clear impact on the operation of businesses, so it is important to take into account the scale of any changes to the minimum wage. In February 2014, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office issued a report, “The Effects of a Minimum-Wage Increase on Employment and Family Income,” that looks into two options that should be considered. Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 or to $9.00. In the report there are distinct trade-offs. If the minimum wage was raised to $10.10, there would likely be a loss of about 500,000 jobs across the labor market, but about 16.5 million low-wage workers would see substantial gains in their earnings on a weekly basis. If raised to $9.00, the labor force would see a reduction of 100,000 jobs, but an estimated 7.6 million low-wage workers would see a boost in their weekly

With the presidential elections right around the corner policy on minimum wage has come up for debate once again. William Hoar from The New American argues in his article “Misguided minimum wage mandate” that raising the minimum wage will only result in loss of jobs. According to the editorial board at USA Today, “ inflation adjusted income of the top 1 percent has grown by 58 percent and the remaining 99 percent has only grown by 6.4 percent”. They then state that a raise to 15 dollars an hour only comes out to an annual income of 30,000 a year. It is true that the majority of the minimum wage workforce is from ages 18 to 25 but considering the fact that that age group are the people attending college and paying off student loans, then it should be expected that they are unhappy with such a low salary. At the minimum wage of 7.25 that comes out to 1200 dollars per month for the cost of living. Therefore raising the minimum wage will not only increase morale, it will also reduce rates of poverty.