preview

Should The Minimum Wage Be Raised?

Better Essays

SHOULD THE CURRENT MINIMUM WAGE BE RAISED TO $15.00?

Fred Wehmer
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University

Author Notes
Fred W. Wehmer, Professional Aeronautics,
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University
Contact: wehmerf@my.erau.edu

ABSTRACT

Fred W. Wehmer
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University
Rolf Hemmerling /ECON 211
11 October 2015

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.

In the United States, the minimum wage is the lowest hourly rate that employers may legally pay to workers. It is a price floor. The forbearer to the minimum wage can be traced to medieval England. In 1348, the Black Plague decimated the English people. This caused a serious labor shortage and caused wages to sky rocket. King Edward III was inclined to set a wage ceiling contained in the Ordinance of Labourers (1349). Mihm, S. (2013, September 5). How the Black Death Spawned the Minimum Wage. The laws were eventually used to set a living wage. In the U.S., mandatory minimum wages were first introduced nationally in 1938. Department of Labor (2014, April 17) Grossman, Jonathan. "Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938: Maximum Struggle for a Minimum Wage". Many states also have

Get Access