Arguments for an Increase in the Minimum Wage
One of the most obvious and anticipated effects of a minimum wage increase is the income increase especially for families on and below the poverty line. An approximated 16.5 million people stand to gain from added wages, and most families ' incomes would, in fact, rise above the federal poverty threshold (Congressional Budget Office). With so many families depending on the minimum wage to forge a livelihood, an increase would be a blessing in disguise. It is a fact that some American families have parents working up to two or three jobs to keep up with the cost of living which is dynamic in nature. As such, children grow up with absentee parents and lacking the attention they need to enhance their psychological well-being. Increasing the minimum wage is likely to ease the pressure from such families and encourage more cohesive family units.
The proposed minimum wage increase also has the benefit of improving working women’s social and economic standings, making it popular with women (Wihbey). This was particularly noted in President Barack Obama’s 2013 State of the Union address to the people of the United States (Wihbey). The role of women in society needs no introduction nor explanation. Women are considered the core of the family and society in many communities the world over. While issues of gender discrimination remain engraved in a range of workplaces, including wage discrimination between male and female workers, a
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
Jason Furman and Parrot Sharon explain why raising minimum wage will help families. The wage has to be elevated to just the point where a family can actually afford all the necessities they need in order to survive. The cost of living in houses for poor people makes it difficult for them to afford it and is difficult to stay on task with all the bills. Many minimum wage workers have families to support. The cost of raising children is very expensive. It is an average of $7,100 per year. Minimum wage workers can barely afford to pay child care for one child, let alone two. Increasing minimum wage will also make life easier to those who have food stamps and child care needs. Which can also help them get into college a lot faster so they can go out and pursue a better paying job.
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.
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.
The topic of raising the minimum wage has many different viewpoints. It is thought to be affected negatively and positively. Some believe it increases unemployment and poverty. Others believe it creates jobs, helps the economy and low-income families by giving them more money to give back to the economy.
With more family income, some people would choose to retire, go back to school, or have children, making it easier for others who need jobs to find them. “According to economist James Galbraith, raising the minimum wage would raise the incomes of 28 million Americans.”
Also depending on where you live and how fast you grow, you will need to buy a variation of clothes for the winter and summer. With a family of four, it is almost incapable of happening. An average article of clothing cost anywhere between $15-30 for one piece. That is more than 2 hours of work. Imagine that, plus only getting an average of $290 a week. That will not last very long, which is very irritating to some people because they don’t want to let their family down, but raising minimum wage will help that tremendously. Another example that could take place is in an emergency like needing to stay late for work, and needing someone to babysit your kids. Many people cannot afford to do that with such little pay and have no choice but to leave work on time. With that happening and many not staying, that could cause them to lose their job, resulting in more poverty. To continue, minimum wage was created to stimulate the economy in 1938 (Sonn, Temple 1). Once minimum wage became a policy in the United States, it was successful in stimulating the economy when it was created because the federal minimum (if adjusted for inflation) was higher than today. Over the past 40 years, the power of minimum wage has fallen sharply. Minimum wage now, is about ⅔ percent of its previous power. The annual salary of a full-time American worker employed at $7.25 per hour is $15,080, which is less
On July 24th, 2009, the United States of America raised the minimum wage to $7.25. However, six years later the minimum wage rage remains the same. It is time once again for the federal government to raise the minimum wage to spur the economy. Raising the minimum wage would help the American economy and the daily life of the citizens for a variety of reasons. The first topic is that it not only would help the people but it also would help the economy as a whole. The second topic is that companies are already raising the minimum wage because of the lack of money workers get. Finally the third supporting idea is that the states are also raising it over the federal minimum wage and also how can help poverty. There are many more topics on why the minimum wage should be raised but these reasons are the most important.
"In fact, data from CPS suggests that the majority of poor families with heads of household of prime working age simply don’t work, so a minimum wage has no impact on these families." (Durden). The correlation between minimum wage and low-income families is weak. There are alternatives that could be more economically efficient for low-income families. It would be a delusion to think that raising the minimum wage would be the most economically efficient way to help low-income families.
Those who are content with raising a family on minimum wage will fail themselves and their family by not making themselves better. Additionally, those employers who report millions and billions in annual profits and continue to pay their workers minimum wage are being greedy, and greater pressure put on the employers to pay a better wage. As the minimum wage rate edges, closer to union pay and state and federal pay scales, it will force the entire country into a labor dispute. Those with a college education or a trade will not continue to work alongside someone with no qualifications and earn the same pay. American companies paying minimum wage in high poverty nations would be overpaying the local nations as they have no experience and the work force pool size to be scarce. Those entering into the workforce deserve minimum wage and this would allow employers to train and employ more workers to fill positions requiring experience. Lastly, those choosing to not better themselves through education, and live on minimum wage is creating a bigger burden for everyone
Raising minimum wage 10% would reduce the amount of poverty by 2.4% ( Konzal, Mike. ) The raise of minimum wage may be able to pull 4.6 million people out of poverty. Although there are 45 million people in poverty, pulling 4.6 million out is a good start. With raising minimum wage there are possibilities of it boosting workers incomes by 10% which is an increase of $1,700. A raise like this is a big boost to people's quality of life and living conditions. Having high paying jobs for workers would pull about 900,000 americans out of poverty and raise the income of 16.5 million workers all around the US. While raising minimum wage has some positive outcomes there is more possibility for negative outcome. Positive effects like poverty rates possibly dropping are great but not enough money can be made. Workers income will be raised because of the wage raise but it is not good enough. If firms pay more they are going to look for less workers because of the raise or resort to other ways of work. A raise in minimum wage has opportunities to pull people out of poverty and raise incomes of people but it is not 't enough. ( Khimm, Suzy. )
If the minimum wage was increased, more people would be able to make an income that is above the poverty line. Likewise, people would be able to support their families by working a larger variety of jobs that would normally be insufficient. For example, a job at a fast food restaurant may have a income that is below the poverty line, but if the annual wage
l minimum wage has been one of the most talked about social issues since it was in was introduced in the year of 1938. To increase the federal minimum wage has pros as well as cons. I believe that the increase of minimum wage would not only give more people motivation but it can increase the livelihoods of individuals in poverty and strengthen business and the economy all at once.
The most prevalent and steadfast myth surrounding the raising of the federal minimum wage is that it will doom the economy. This might seem logical at first, but just think about it for a second. Why do minimum wage employees need more cash? The answer is simple: To spend it, to buy the things that they and their families need to survive. “Most minimum wage workers need this income to make ends meet and spend it quickly, boosting the economy. Research indicates that for every $1 added to the minimum wage, low-wage worker households spent an additional $2,800 the following year” (Fair). Furthermore, EPI estimates that if the federal minimum wage were raised to $10.10 an hour, it would result in over
Low wages affect single mothers and children since prices for everything is too high. “ Many low-wage job conditions of parents poorly affect kids”(Tompkins). The children with parents who do not make a higher percentage outcome usually don’t do as well like their peers in terms of health and education only because they are poorer. Children experience less healthy lives and are most likely to drop out of high school. (Jaqueline) Children see that their parents are struggling to make ends meet but instead of keep going to school, they drop out to put less stress on their parents. Without the minimum wage increase this is going to keep happening with more and more families. Low wages make child care unaffordable, and research shows that low wages