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Impact of raising the minimum wage
Positives of raising minimum wage effects
Positives of raising minimum wage effects
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Poverty in the United States will keep increasing if Congress does not raise the minimum wage as living expenses continue to rise. With expenses such rent and food, millions of people in the US are struggling to afford the necessities to keep them alive. In order to help the working and middle class, President Barack Obama wants Congress to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $9.00 an hour by the end of 2015. Unfortunately, CEO’s and the Republican Party in the US are against raising the minimum wage because it will cut into the companies’ profits and claim that it will cause job losses. There are several benefits in raising the minimum wage, as it reduces the number of people in poverty which in turn reduces the government expenditures to support people living in poverty. Also raising the minimum wage is beneficial to the economy because it creates wage growth which in turn gives people more money to spend. Finally, another benefit in raising the minimum wage is that it would reduce the income inequality gap, as there are many CEO’s in Canada and the US that make millions of dollars every year; while people earning minimum wage are struggling to survive. In the end, Canada and the United States need to raise the minimum wage in order to help people rise above the poverty line which will in turn help grow the economy. To begin with, the government in the US needs to raise the minimum wage in order for people to rise above the poverty line, which will result in reduced government expenditures. Millions of people every day are working to support one’s family, but the Federal minimum wage is not enough money for families to spend on food. With 46.5 million people living in poverty in the United States, the government is f... ... middle of paper ... ... help improve the economy. Therefore, raising the minimum wage is beneficial to the economy as it creates jobs and raises the income of millions of people across United States and Canada. The government needs to raise the minimum wage as it raises the income of people, which saves the taxpayers money and allows it to be used on things such as schools and fixing roads. Also, increasing the minimum wage creates wage growth, which helps grow the GDP, as people have more disposable income. Lastly, increasing the minimum wage reduces the wage gap between the CEOs and working class, with the purpose of distributing more of the profits to the working class to help pay for health care and education. In today’s world of capitalism, there should be a cap on how much one can make in a year in order to help the working class, who ultimately help keep the companies in business.
Many people against raising the minimum wage create arguments such as, “it will cause inflation”, or, “ it will result in job loss.” Not only are these arguments terribly untrue, they also cause a sense of panic towards the majority working-class. Since 1938, the federal minimum wage has been increased 22 times. For more than 75 years, real GDP per capita has consistently increased, even when the wage has been
Understanding how the minimum wage level functions to affect poverty in a given society is crucial for informing policy in a number of important areas. Indeed, examining the link between poverty and the minimum wage is necessary for policy-makers working to establish sound economic policy as well as labour and social advocacy groups seeking to ensure the minimum wage is at a level sufficient to ensure workers can meet their most basic and fundamental needs. Readers should be concerned with the link between the minimum wage and levels of poverty because poverty is a particularly significant and impactful social issue. High rates of poverty can both negatively impact the economy, as well as contribute to a host of negative social issues. At the same time, there may be questions regarding the impacts to poverty associated with the minimum wage. Research which better clarifies this link is particularly important. For these reasons, investigating the link between the minimum wage and poverty is essential. This essay will provide a summary of two academic journal articles investigating the link between poverty and the minimum wage. Each summary will discuss the particular focus of researchers, the contribution of the study, the methodology employed by researchers, as well as their findings and conclusions. Finally, the essay will conclude with a brief commentary regarding the relevance of these articles to the larger topic, as well as their effectiveness in promoting learning.
One way raising minimum wage will be beneficial is that it could lift many Americans out of poverty. Raising the minimum wage in Illinois, would help the families of more than 1.1 million workers who work to meet their children’s basic needs and “reduce the adverse effects of poverty on a child’s well-being” (Fiscal Policy Center). Studies have shown that raising the minimum wage would help 1 in 5 Illinois families who are in poverty. By raising the minimum wage in Illinois, it would help workers with families spend money on food, housing, gas, and other needs without going into poverty. Along with puling Americans out of poverty, raising the minimum wage could also stimulate economic growth. Raising the minimum wage, is stimulating economic growth by worsening the income inequality and substantially reducing the employee turnover for the business. Increasing a person’s income would raise their yearly earnings by $3,640 and “Improve the economic security and reduce the economies poverty rate” (Fiscal Policy Center). Low-wage workers spend most of what they earn on their basic needs, which is quickly spent and does not leave the worker with much money left to spend on other needs. This boost in the minimum wage will stimulate the economy and help create opportunities for more people, by hiring more workers to keep up with the
Poverty continues to grow in America. The average minimum wage in the United States is $7.35 an hour- far too low in today’s society. Key expenses, for example, gas and housing prices, have gone up significantly since the minimum wage was last changed in 2007 (Wagner 52). The laws creating the minimum wage were intended to improve the standard of living and decrease poverty. Raising minimum wage is a vital step in decreasing poverty and giving every family the opportunity to survive and succeed. Millions of hard-working Americans are below the poverty line and need an increase in pay. Minimum wage must be raised because it will diminish poverty and assist the working class to support their families.
It is very difficult to live in America if you are living off of minimum wage, and many Americans are living off of it today. Raising minimum wages has its benefits like gaining more money to live better, but people do not see the down side of the increases in wages. With the increase in minimum wage, it also causes the cost of living to increase. How can this help the economy or help people? Minimum wages in America should not be increased because it will cause cost of living to increase, reduce employment, and cause businesses to lose money and workers.
In conclusion, minimum wage workers need an increase in their incomes. They need more money to provide food, shelter, and other necessities for their family and themselves. Minimum wage should be increased because poverty will be reduced, it will be good for the economy, and provide more for families. Raising the minimum wage is also about reducing the inequality of it.
By raising the minimum wage, it would stimulate the economy in many ways. It would “increase the purchasing power of many workers whose wages would also go up” according to the article Raising the minimum wage: Guide to Critical Analysis. Another way that it would help the economy is that it would decrease the amount of people that would need government welfar...
A higher minimum wage would benefit families of the working class who need the extra money in order to survive. Not only are higher wages needed but companies can afford to give them. With the minimum wage at one of the all time lows, an increase is of the utmost importance considering it would strengthen families and the economy.
Government must provide a floor against poverty by providing an adequate minimum wage. The essential role of the government is to have the people's best interest in mind and one way to do that is combating poverty. Although there are many solutions when it comes to tackling poverty, one ideal solution is raising the minimum wage since that will benefit majority of the population. Infact by raising the minimum wage it will cause a positive cycle of economical benefits for small and large business globally. For instances, when working class families benefit from a raise in their wages they are able to contribute back to the market by having extra money to spend on goods that they normally can not afford. Buying these goods equal the need for
Poverty is a huge problem in America that has been around forever. There is also the problem of the minimum wage, and how it relates to poverty, that has been studied by many researchers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2015, 13.5% of Americans suffer in poverty, and the average annual salary of minimum wage workers is $15,080, which is right below the poverty line for two or more person families (David Cooper 1). This brings us to the question, will raising minimum wage reduce poverty? Raising the federal minimum wage would fail to reduce poverty because according to research, most benefits of raising it would not go to those in poverty, unemployment would rise, and business would be hurt and forced to raise their prices.
When approaching the subject of minimum wage increases, we consider the topic to be extremely controversial. Both proponents and opponents argue what impact it will have on the economy and how to bring low-income wage earners out of poverty. Some claim it will have a negative impact on small business and decreased employment rates while others think, it will improve low-income families’ standard of living and boost economy. Increasing the minimum wage assists in decreasing poverty but more support programs are need.
Currently the United States of America is undergoing economic difficulty, with the gaps between the upper “1%” and the “99%” only growing in size. Along with this ever increasing gap, many Americans are finding that they are no longer making enough money to simply survive in the current economic climate. Due to this, there have been calls for the Federal Minimum Wage to increase from it’s current $7.25 an hour to a much higher number, many calling for $15.00 an hour. However, I propose and argue that the implementation of a federally mandated, flat-across the board, minimum wage brings more harm than good. It reduces the success and viability of new and growing small businesses, forces massive wage increases upon large businesses, and can lead
There has been substantial complication in America in recent years on deciding an appropriate and feasible setting of the minimum wage requirement. It is understood that much of America’s income inequality can be defined by the distribution of income. Furthermore, looking at graphical depiction of the wage distribution, we are able to identify that an ample amount of workers are earning low wages and a small amount of workers are gaining significantly. Many of these low wage earners are those whose wages are determined by the minimum wage requirement; therefore, there has been much of an attempt to increase the minimum wage in order to correct income inequality in America. In my proposal I will be underlining the cost and benefits of introducing
The minimum wage seems like a just and compassionate policy: its purpose is to assist individuals in the greatest need by keeping them out of poverty. Although few people would argue that a household supported by one or more minimum wage incomes can enjoy the greatest comforts that society has to offer, many believe that it is still a beneficial policy because it seeks to meet at least basic needs. However, Roger Miller and other economists argue that however effective the minimum wage law was when it was enacted, it is no longer serving its intended purpose. Miller (2017, 98-99) claims that poor families are often poor not because the minimum wage is not high enough, but rather because individuals in those households
Issues pertaining to minimum wage might not affect all Americans, but for those that it does affect: we might ask why the controversy? There are no simple answers as this battle did not develop overnight. Minimum wage is something of much technicality, researches on minimum wage help to develop answers on whether or not it affects employment or unemployment, another issue is it helps to determine if inflation will occur. It is more than just coefficients or simple the elasticity of wages. Our group argue from different alternatives, at this time we feel as if the wages should go up over a gradual period of time. We do not feel as if: at minimum wage a family is able to maintain the basic living standards.