Should Minimum Wage Be Increased?
Minimum Wage Increase
The minimum wage must be raised today because the cost of living has gone up drastically. Education is essential today, and that price tag has increased drastically in the past twenty years as well. People should not have to fight for equal pay for equal work. Companies should be forced to pay their workers what they deserve, and that is more than minimum wage is now. With our new technology and the technology in the future work is harder and more complicated. A minimum wage increase would raise the wages of many workers and increase benefits to those disadvantaged workers. Because the cost of living has sky rocketed, it has become almost impossible to raise a family on a minimum wage job. A person living on his or her own cannot survive on minimum wage budget. Minimum wage needs to be raised in order for people to adequately support themselves and their families.
The first issue that needs to be emphasized, is the unemployment rate. Some people believe that if the minimum wage is raised it will increase the rate of unemployment. This statement is false. It actually is incredibly beneficial. “The unemployment rate went from 3.8% in 1967 to 3.6% in 1968 to 3.5% …show more content…
in 1969,” when the minimum wage rate was increased. This was stated by Sklar Holly in her essay, “Raising Minimum Wage Does Not Increase Unemployment.” Holly Sklar claims that raising the minimum wage will, “speed recovery from economic recessions by giving more spending money to lower-income families. Sklar is an author and syndicated columnist, policy analyst, and strategist whose articles have appeared in hundreds of newspapers and online outlets. She is the director of the Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign, an organization that seeks to raise the minimum wage.”
Next is the growing share of workers that make too little to buy necessities, and even less afford a middle-class standard of living. More “two-paycheck households struggle to afford a home, college, healthcare and retirement once normal for middle-class households with one paycheck was also recognized in Skylar’s article.” Someone trying to support a family on today’s minimum wage does not even reach the federal government’s “poverty line” for a family of three. They would make about $14,500 per year according to Ralph Nader in his article, “Time for a Raise.” The federal poverty line for a family of three is $18,123. If the minimum wage was increased to a level at which families could sustain themselves, fewer people may end up needing government assistance for housing, food, or health care. This would be a significant benefit for budgets. If minimum wage was increased people could once again buy necessities that they want and need. Considering the consumer spending makes up about 70% of our economy,” this justifies the raising the minimum wage will boost the economy. Raising the minimum wage from $7.90 an hour to $8.50 an hour, would inject approximately $9.5 billion extra spending power into the economy, explained in Nader’s article as well. Another point to mention, is that many people who hold minimum wage jobs are women and disabled people, which means that these individuals have to struggle more just because of the way that they are. If the wage was increased it would allow these people to be able to support themselves much more successfully.
Lastly the increase would aid the disabled citizens in America. Many companies are paying a subminimum wage for disabled employees. This could be as little as four dollars an hour. “According to the National Council on Disability (NCD), people with disabilities are about three times more likely to live in poverty than non-disabled Americans, and less than one in five disabled people participate in the workforce. That’s compared to over 68 percent labor force participation among people without disabilities, demonstrated in Joseph J. Sabia’s paper, “Reduce Poverty and Hardship.” If the minimum wage is raised then the disabled people will benefit by receiving more money.
In conclusion, minimum wage needs to be raised in order to people to support themselves and or their families and live with a comfortable lifestyle.
Although some individuals believe that increasing the wage would cause unemployment, it would not. Instead, it would boost the economy and increase consumer spending as much as 70%. Families with three members will also benefit because they would be able to purchase necessities, food, and health-care. Also, it would help the people that disabilities and are unable to work like normal employees. Instead of receiving a subminimum wage for the same work as someone who receives minimum wage, it would be equal pay for both of them. All in all, raising the minimum wage would be beneficial for the employees that receive minimum wage
now.
Works Cited
Hassett, Kevin A. "American Enterprise Institute." Why We Shouldn 't Raise the Minimum Wage.
N.p., n.d. Web. 05 May 2014.
Mukherjee, My. "Left Behind By Obama’s Call For A Higher Minimum Wage." ThinkProgress
RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2014.
Nader, Ralph. "Benefits of Raising the Minimum Wage - Time For A Raise." Time For A Raise.
N.p., n.d. Web. 05 May 2014
Sabia, Joseph J. "Can Raising the Minimum Wage Reduce Poverty and Hardship?"
Epionline.org. N.p., Apr. 2012. Web.
Sklar, Holly. "Raising Minimum Wage Does Not Increase Unemployment." Unemployment. Ed.
David Haugen and Susan Musser. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2011. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Raising the Minimum Wage in Hard Times." Web. 6 May 2014.
The minimum wage must be raised today because the cost of living has gone up drastically. Education is essential today, and that price tag has increased drastically in the past twenty years as well. People should not have to fight for equal pay for equal work. Companies should be forced to pay their workers what they deserve, and that is more than minimum wage is now. With our new technology and the technology in the future work is harder and more complicated. A minimum wage increase would raise the wages of many workers and increase benefits to those disadvantaged workers. Because the cost of living has sky rocketed, it has become almost impossible to raise a family on a minimum wage job. A person living on his or her own cannot survive on minimum wage budget. Minimum wage needs to be raised in order for people to adequately support themselves and their families.
The first issue that needs to be emphasized, is the unemployment rate. Some people believe that if the minimum wage is raised it will increase the rate of unemployment. This statement is false. It actually is incredibly beneficial. “The unemployment rate went from 3.8% in 1967 to 3.6% in 1968 to 3.5% …show more content…
in 1969,” when the minimum wage rate was increased. This was stated by Sklar Holly in her essay, “Raising Minimum Wage Does Not Increase Unemployment.” Holly Sklar claims that raising the minimum wage will, “speed recovery from economic recessions by giving more spending money to lower-income families. Sklar is an author and syndicated columnist, policy analyst, and strategist whose articles have appeared in hundreds of newspapers and online outlets. She is the director of the Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign, an organization that seeks to raise the minimum wage.”
Next is the growing share of workers that make too little to buy necessities, and even less afford a middle-class standard of living. More “two-paycheck households struggle to afford a home, college, healthcare and retirement once normal for middle-class households with one paycheck was also recognized in Skylar’s article.” Someone trying to support a family on today’s minimum wage does not even reach the federal government’s “poverty line” for a family of three. They would make about $14,500 per year according to Ralph Nader in his article, “Time for a Raise.” The federal poverty line for a family of three is $18,123. If the minimum wage was increased to a level at which families could sustain themselves, fewer people may end up needing government assistance for housing, food, or health care. This would be a significant benefit for budgets. If minimum wage was increased people could once again buy necessities that they want and need. Considering the consumer spending makes up about 70% of our economy,” this justifies the raising the minimum wage will boost the economy. Raising the minimum wage from $7.90 an hour to $8.50 an hour, would inject approximately $9.5 billion extra spending power into the economy, explained in Nader’s article as well. Another point to mention, is that many people who hold minimum wage jobs are women and disabled people, which means that these individuals have to struggle more just because of the way that they are. If the wage was increased it would allow these people to be able to support themselves much more successfully.
Lastly the increase would aid the disabled citizens in America. Many companies are paying a subminimum wage for disabled employees. This could be as little as four dollars an hour. “According to the National Council on Disability (NCD), people with disabilities are about three times more likely to live in poverty than non-disabled Americans, and less than one in five disabled people participate in the workforce. That’s compared to over 68 percent labor force participation among people without disabilities, demonstrated in Joseph J. Sabia’s paper, “Reduce Poverty and Hardship.” If the minimum wage is raised then the disabled people will benefit by receiving more money.
In conclusion, minimum wage needs to be raised in order to people to support themselves and or their families and live with a comfortable lifestyle.
Although some individuals believe that increasing the wage would cause unemployment, it would not. Instead, it would boost the economy and increase consumer spending as much as 70%. Families with three members will also benefit because they would be able to purchase necessities, food, and health-care. Also, it would help the people that disabilities and are unable to work like normal employees. Instead of receiving a subminimum wage for the same work as someone who receives minimum wage, it would be equal pay for both of them. All in all, raising the minimum wage would be beneficial for the employees that receive minimum wage
now.
Works Cited
Hassett, Kevin A. "American Enterprise Institute." Why We Shouldn 't Raise the Minimum Wage.
N.p., n.d. Web. 05 May 2014.
Mukherjee, My. "Left Behind By Obama’s Call For A Higher Minimum Wage." ThinkProgress
RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2014.
Nader, Ralph. "Benefits of Raising the Minimum Wage - Time For A Raise." Time For A Raise.
N.p., n.d. Web. 05 May 2014
Sabia, Joseph J. "Can Raising the Minimum Wage Reduce Poverty and Hardship?"
Epionline.org. N.p., Apr. 2012. Web.
Sklar, Holly. "Raising Minimum Wage Does Not Increase Unemployment." Unemployment. Ed.
David Haugen and Susan Musser. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2011. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Raising the Minimum Wage in Hard Times." Web. 6 May 2014.