The And Benefits Of A Minimum Wage

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.

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

There are 156. 4 million people in the US workforce, however 5.2% of those are unemployed. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour; however, each state has its own laws regarding minimum wage and the amount can be higher or lower than the federal minimum, but the employee receives the higher of the two (2015). A higher minimum wage means that employers are less apt to hire someone. Some experts explain this by saying that if an employer values the job at a lower wage per hour than the minimum wage set by the government, then the employer is less likely to hire someone to fill that role. The employer only wants to hire someone when that person will be able to generate some sort of value for the company and positively affect the bottom line. Another problem with a high minimum wage is that potential employees are less likely to want to work if they are able to receive unemployment benefits from the government that will almost equal that which they would receive from working a minimum wage job (Gillikin).

The idea of minimum wage is that workers are guaranteed enough money to live off of. The price of minimum wage is determined by the state, but a federal minimum wage is set. Some states choose to go above the minimum wage, while others, such as Alabama and Louisiana, choose to not have minimum wage at all (Root). Minimum wage is important to society, because it can affect many people’s lives. There are many pros and cons to having minimum wage in the United States. Furthermore, various stakeholders are also impacted by this policy in numerous of ways. Minimum wage is a microeconomics and macroeconomic problem that has many consequences. Therefore, minimum wage has been a great economic issue because of people’s support and opposition to the policy.

The Democrats Party has long believed in equal rights, opportunities for the working and lower classes. The Republican Party, known as GOP (Grand Old Party), supports business owners large and small, and they believe that the government should have limited role in daily life; also favoring the reduction of illegal immigration into the United States and state ran health care. With many Americans unhappy with the Democrats, they have showed up at the midterm elections and entrusted Republicans with control of both the House and Senate; this brings us to having asymmetrical polarization, where the Republican

Democrats are “left-leaning” or a liberal party and Republicans are “right-leaning” or a conservative party. Left leaning party supports social equality by distributing political power to the people, while the right leaning party favors centralizing political power in the hands of the leaders of government. The Democratic Party’s philosophy lies within positive rights and the notion that people are entitled to certain benefits, and that government is obliged to institute the conditions in which people can achieve these benefits. According to Democrats.org, they believe that it is the government’s responsibility to make sure businesses and other institutions serve the interest of the people. This is the reason why Democratic platform wants higher corporate taxes and increase in minimum wage. An example would be Franklin Roosevelt’s new deal policies of unprecedented government involvement in the economy, which led to “modern Democratic Party” platform (“principles”). Democrats fully support individualism to which people are entitled to lead a chosen lifestyle without regards for traditional social norms (“philosophy”). The Republican Party’s philosophy is that Americans should desire for peace and freedom with spreading human rights, while preserving their ideals of national strength and pride. They claim that their party’s platform is based upon the founders of the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

The Democrat and the Republican Party are the two major political parties in the United States. Presidents have almost always been selected from one of these parties, and these parties take up the majority of Congress. This is where the similarity between the two parties ends. The Democrats have typically taken more liberal views, while the Republicans tend to be more conservative. This leads to a lot of disagreement on the subject of legislature.

Minimum wage is the topic I chose because there has been a controversy regarding raising minimum wage and the impact of minimum wage to the society. Whether it would aid workers or not. There have been arguments of laypersons of increasing minimum wage to a very high level and there are arguments against it.

Minimum wage is a struggle for many Americans and I believe it needs to be raised. The minimum wage of the United States is $7.25 an hour. It is a rate that isn’t letting many Americans live life comfortably. If the minimum wage was changed even a merely $3.75 it would change people’s lives and will let many people get by. The minimum wage of $7.25 has stayed the same since 2009 and there hasn’t been any effort by the government to change it. Many states have increased their minimum wage, but I hope that the minimum wage rises nationwide and not individually as states.

Did you know minimum wage was $0.25 per hour in 1938? Since then it has raised to a whopping $7.25. Most readers will agree that there is a problem with this current minimum wage, considering the cost of living and salaries, Etc. However, they might not understand the complexity of the issue. In fact, the topic is not simply a question of if the minimum wage should be increased or kept the same, but more of a complex issue involving the different viewpoints on why people agree or disagree. Some reasons why people might agree is: decreasing poverty, increase in government aiding, and cannot afford basic needs. In opposition, opponents of the minimum wage might say it increases poverty, increases unemployment (specifically among unskilled or

Increasing the federal minimum wage has been a controversial topic around the United States; many people are in favor of raising the minimum wage, while others heavily oppose the idea. While everyone is entitled to their own opinion, statistics have shown that the minimum wage is closely correlated to public health, and it shows that this topic is a much bigger and broader picture than simply economics. The federal minimum wage has a history that dates all the way back to 1938, and the strong debates and opinions surrounding it still continue to this day. (ProCon.org, 2016) Like any health policy issue, there are both pros and cons to the issue, and there are also different aspects and perspectives to look at when it comes to both the

In modern day society, there has been a present minimum wage of $7.25 since 2010.

“It is as important to examine what we forgo, as well as what we will get if we choose one alternative over another.” In other words, before a change is implemented into an economy, careful consideration of all other alternatives and their possible outcomes must be thoroughly examined. However, unforeseen outcomes often arise due to the imperfectability of humans.

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.

Companies and small business’s pay their employe’s hourly wages based on a minimum wage. Today in America we have many hard workers who are working for minimum wage which consists of $7.25 per hour. There is some businesses that believe all employees should be paid at minimum wage while other businesses pay well over minimum wage. Skills, attitude, responsibility and work ethic all affect how employers base employees hourly wage. When looking at the economy the government should not increase mnimum wages, there are many factors that affect minimum wage such as elasticty of demand, and how education and skills can increase minimum wage.