Positive Effects Of Raising Minimum Wage

To begin, there is an extensive debate over whether if the U.S were to raise minimum wage, could it really help the working poor of low income families. Nancy Cook, in her article from the National Journal, “Why a Minimum-Wage Hike Can’t Help the Poor”, she points out that two thirds of around 100 surveys from 2007 had a negative effect and that it does more for the middle class than the lower one. (p.14). So, therefore, from her

One of the biggest political topics in today's society is the federal minimum wage and whether it should be raised or kept at where it is now at $7.25 an hour. Arguments could be made for both sides on whether it should be raised or left alone. The majority of minimum wage in today’s job market are unskilled positions. Minimum wage jobs were created for teenagers and colleges kids as a way to get into the workforce and to have a little extra money for themselves. It was not designed to be a wage for people to live on. Increasing the minimum wage would hurt the economy by hurting small businesses, a huge loss of jobs and it would increase the competition between teens and adults. Overall if the federal minimum wage is increased it will have many negative effects on the economy.

Raising the minimum wage is a very important public policy issue. Raising the minimum wage is a responsible policy that is supported by research and demanded by the American public. Each day, minimum wage workers across the country struggle to make ends meet and provide a decent life for their kids (Scott & Perez, 2016). Raising the minimum wage is a controversial issue, many believe that raising the minimum wage would only provide low wage workers more money to spend. However, the benefits can be endless for low wage workers. If minimum wage is increased across the United States it would afford the people effected more opportunities for financial freedom. Increasing the minimum wage would raise the standard of living for low wage workers, allow families to be removed from poverty, allow for government welfare spending to be reduced and lastly additional income being spent would positively affect the economy.

Ira Knight, who is an author of article “Let’s Make the Minimum Wage a Living Wage”, expresses an opinion that increasing the minimum wage would help all struggling workers and at the same time improve U.S economy. On the other side, Janice Steele in her article “Keep the Minimum Wage Where It Is” argues that raising the minimum wage would have bad effects on workers, consumers and small businesses. Ira Knight’s article seems to be the stronger of the two positions because her arguments are based on several recent studies, and last but not least, she had a personal experience with the minimum wage job.

Picture this: You are a single parent of two, you work 40 hours a week plus occasional overtime at a minimum wage paying job, you struggle to put food on the table to feed your family, and then you receive a call from the bank saying that your home is being foreclosed. This is the situation faced by thousands of Americans every year due to low income and wealth inequality. The federal minimum wage (FMW) as of April 2014 is $7.25, which is not enough to keep a family of two above the poverty line. There are certain questions on this topic that should be addressed, such as why is poverty and wealth distribution an issue in the United States today? Should the FMW be raised and why? How would raising the FMW affect American families? What are

An issue that has been debating throughout centuries is whether or not America should increase the minimum wage. This is an issue that has been arising to be relevant to people all over the nation. Researches have provided logical facts and statistics on how increasing the minimum wage would be the solution to America’s debt. Increasing the minimum wage has also been successful in several countries including Germany. Studies have shown that decreasing the minimum wage is unlikely to solve any economic woes. While when we increase the minimum wage it benefits the economy, employment as well as skillful people.

Even though Ms.Steele considers the down fall of raising minimum wage, Mr.Knight provides clear evidence that raising minimum wage would help the America's economy.A 2011 study showed that increasing minimum wage lead to higher consumer spending.Another study showed that in the first six months of 2014 states that increased minimum wage, increased in jobs also.Last but not least, in 2014 University of Massachusetts Ameherst found that increasing minimum wage would lift 4.5 million Americans out of poverty and 3.5 million from food stamps.

The federal minimum wage has been in effect since The Great Depression. Recently, it has become a hotly contested issue. Should it be raised or not? The issue is a complicated one because some believe that more harm will come than good and many believe this because majority of people are misinformed on the impact raising minimum wage can have on the American economy and families. According to Cato Institute’s article on Reasons Not to Raise the Minimum Wage, the important or more discussed problems that are argued by antagonist are job loss, higher prices for consumers, and the little effect on reducing poverty. Although these problems seem significant, protagonist will say the war against poverty and income

The idea of having a federal minimum wage is a good one. The idea is to protect low and unskilled workers and allow workers to earn a living wage. The recent debate on the floor, though, is whether or not to raise the minimum wage from the current $7.25 per hour up to $10.10. President Barack Obama made this proposal during his annual State of the Union Address, and after this there were many hot debates about it. The debates focused not only on the pro side and the con side of increasing the minimum wage, but also alternatives to increasing it.

The minimum wage is basically the lowest an employer can give there worker an hour, and abide by the labor laws. In most states the minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, but in California and Massachusetts the wages there is $10.00 per hour. Senator Bernie Sander agreed to living in poverty with the wage set at $7.25 per hour, and that if he made it into the office that he would introduce a bill to raise the wages all over to $15.00 per hour. The benefit of raising the wages would help low income families throughout the economy, and help with unemployment. Overall, this is based on our President and Congress whether a law like that can be passed.

There has been many conversations about what the positive impacts can come to America 's lowest income workers as a result of an increase in the minimum wage, and there has also been equally as many discussions over the negative effects the increase can have on similar people. This paper’s purpose is to combine each viewpoint and objectively analyze the arguments for and against an increase in the minimum wage. I will first discuss the

“In 2014, 77.2 million workers age 16 and older in the United States were paid at hourly rates, representing 58.7 percent of all wage and salary workers. Among those paid by the hour, 1.3 million earned exactly the prevailing federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. About 1.7 million had wages below the federal minimum. Together, these 3.0 million workers with wages at or below the federal minimum made up 3.9 percent of all hourly paid workers”(Ratio of Minimum Wage). The Federal minimum wage drives debate among people today, and with many wanting the federal government to raise the minimum wage to fifteen dollars, economists have studied and will continue to study the effects of a fifteen dollar minimum. This poses the question: What are the social and economic outcomes of raising the federal minimum wage to fifteen dollars an hour?

Many people want the Government to increase minimum wage so they can earn more money. What they don’t understand is all the consequences that the impact of raising minimum wage would have on our economy and the poor people in society. Sure it would guarantee you more money but it doesn't have a positive effect on the people it is suppose to help. A minimum wage increase would force businesses to cut the unskilled workers forcing more of them into poverty, which will ultimately hurt them when the price of goods go up.

With a rise in minimum wage, Ronald faces a dilemma that is germane to what many companies in the U.S. are facing today. The subject of raising minimum wage is controversial because in order to achieve this, one party will benefit while the other will be negatively affected. As Mankiw notes, “Minimum-wage laws dictate the lowest price for labor that any employer may pay” (Mankiw, 2012, p.117). The impacts of the wage increase are two fold and affect each party differently. For current employees, the affect will be positive in the short-run, as they will receive higher incomes and subsequently receive a higher standard of living; prospective workers are also positively affected, in that with the rise in wage, there will be an increase in workers

Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 is not the answer. The various amount of unintended consequences that would come about as a result is reason enough not to support an increase. Those who support an increase contend that it will alleviate poverty. Suppose a spike in the minimum wage does reduce poverty for some workers. This development will be offset since an increase in the minimum wage will further price out inexperienced workers from the job market, resulting in an increase in unemployment and thus, poverty. This can properly be described as a catch-22 situation; no matter happens, someone will lose. When you take these negative affects into account, is an increase in the minimum wage worth it? As expounded further, no it is not.