Having minimum wage causes many people to become jobless all so a certain amount of people could live comfortably. Cooper believes that today’s workers are “stuck in jobs that pay so little they struggle to afford basic necessities.” Yes, some people may have trouble affording basic necessities, but at least they have some money that will help them out even if it’s just a little. A low paying job can make a difference between having nothing to eat at all or three small meals every day. If minimum wage increases, than the lives of many people would become even more difficult, and unbearable. A job that pays a little money is better than no job at all.
Raising minimum wage can negatively affect the economy wide supply and demand. Cooper argues
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that, “raising wages for low wage workers can strengthen economic wide demand.” It can strengthen demand, but what Copper failed to include is that it will weaken supply. Minimum wage disrupts the equilibrium price of the job market. The best price at which businesses could pay their workers is not being considered. So that there would be an equal supply and demand for jobs. Instead there is a surplus of demand for jobs, with a shortage of the supply for jobs. Consequently, damaging the economy because there are not enough people to be active consumers. Minimum wage is a contradiction upon itself.
Minimum wage was created as a price floor to protect workers from employers that wanted to provide them with low paying jobs. Cooper explains that “during periods of high unemployment many workers are forced to take lower paying jobs.... because there simply are no other options available to them.” Workers do not have any power during periods of unemployment. Employers can easily abuse their power and they will. Businesses try to make the most amount of money possible, meaning they will pay their workers little to nothing to increase their profit. Thus, the idea of Minimum wage contradicts itself because it is the reason for the high unemployment rate in America. Consequently, forcing workers to take low paying jobs because the supply of jobs is so …show more content…
low. Americans that are living under the federal poverty line is not struggling as much as most would think. Sowell states that, Most Americans living below the government-set poverty line have a washer and/or a dryer, as well as a computer. More than 80 percent have air conditioning. More than 80 percent also have both a landline and a cell phone. Nearly all have television and a refrigerator. Most Americans living below the official poverty line also own a motor vehicle and have more living space than the average European… Most American that is considered “poor” are actually doing very well for themselves. So the argument that the current minimum wage is not enough to provide for basic needs is irrelevant. Many Americans that are living under the minimum wage of seven dollars and twenty five cents are doing better than the average European. People who are living in those conditions does not seem like they need more money. If minimum wage jobs become too comfortable of a position, people would not strive to get a higher education and get a higher paying job. Sowell states that, “There is nothing mysterious about the fact that most people start off in the entry level jobs that pay much less than they will earn after they get some work experience.” Minimum wage jobs are not meant to provide a standard of living for families. It is so people could work and realize they want better for their life so they will have the motivation to try their best to achieve their goal. If minimum wage becomes too high, people would start to settle for blue collar jobs instead of becoming a doctor, engineer, or something that can benefit our society. Low paying jobs like working at a fast food restaurant is meant for teenagers that are just starting off as becoming adults and if minimum wage continues to rise there will not be any more jobs for the teenagers.
Sowell argues that, “… in the United States, unemployment rates for younger workers are often 20 percent or higher, even when there is no recession.” These jobs pay low wages for a reason. So that teenagers have a base to start their life as an employee. If this continues than teenagers will never have the opportunity to gain experience to eventually get hired at a higher level job. It will be nearly impossible for future generations to find a job. Unemployed will lose many opportunities to earn a higher rate of pay in the
future.
Imagine a world where you are working overtime, seven days a week, yet your kids are starving. You can’t get the education you need because you don’t have the time and money to afford it, and you can’t change jobs because this is the only one you can get. Unfortunately, this is the reality for millions of Americans living today. The federal minimum wage is too low to help families, and actually mathematically speaking, too low to survive on. The quality of life for minimum wage families is terribly low, and that is unacceptable. As humans, we should be looking after others and helping the poverty come out of their continuous cycle. Raising the minimum wage would not only help families be able to afford a better quality of life, but help them to afford healthy food, get an adequate education, and invest in the necessary health care they need.
This article gives you a yes and no opinion on whether or not the F...
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
"Plain and simple, Congress must act to meet the needs of our constituents. We can do that by strengthening families and increasing the minimum wage."
"When we talk about the kind of folks whose lives will be made better by raising the minimum wage, we're not talking about a couple teenagers earning extra spending money to supplement their allowance. We're talking about providers and breadwinners. Working Americans with bills to pay and mouths to feed."
Minimum wage is a difficult number to decide on because it affects different income earning citizens in different ways. According to Principles of Microeconomics, by N. Gregory Mankiw, minimum wage is a law that establishes the lowest price for labor that and employer may pay (Mankiw 6-1b). Currently, the minimum wage in the United States is $7.25 per hour. For many years politicians and citizens have argued on what should be the minimum wage that would benefit the economy and society in general. A minimum wage was first established in 1938 to increase the standard of living of lower class workers. To discuss what is better for the country and its citizens, people have to understand what is a minimum wage and what are its effects.
Minimum wage has been around for ages. Minimum wage employment was a temporary condition for people earning little payment until they moved on to a better paying job. These jobs helped build résumés, experiences, and skills for a better career. It has become the easiest way for people to receive easy pay. As years went on that idea began to demolish into a job that many families can get to survive and pay for their expenses. There have been many arguments going on, "Should minimum wage be raised or should it be lowered or eliminated altogether?" This action has its pros and cons. It can benefit many families as living cost has gone up, price for education is rising, and college students are in huge debts. It may increase poverty, but those
The definition of Minimum Wage is “an amount of money that is the least amount of money per hour that workers must be paid according to the law” (Minimum wage). Minimum wage, like other laws, are used to keep the economy in line. Minimum wage laws were invented in Australia and New Zealand with the purpose of guaranteeing a minimum standard of living for unskilled workers. (Linda Gorman) Minimum wage puts a price on the services one offers. Many different principles can be used to explain Minimum wage and explore the different aspects of it. Including what minimum wage does for our economy and the current status of it.
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.
Since its inception, the minimum wage has been a hotbed for debate. If today’s leaders could manage to increase minimum wage, millions of families would benefit.
The minimum wage must be raised because the cost of living has gone up considerably. Education is essential if one wishes to work, and the cost of education has increased drastically in the past twenty years. Companies should be requied to pay 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.
Minimum Wage is way too low. It does not help pay for needed expenses and wanted expenses, and it will help the economy and people get jobs. In fact, in an article by Roman Catholic clergyman John Ryan he says “ That a living wage was a basic right of the worker, not a benefit”(A.6). Particularly the minimum wage does not cover needs and wants. The income is too low. In an article by Jenny Jarvie it says “ several million low-income workers across the nation who
The government must improve their programs by increasing minimum wage, welfare nets, and decreasing government subsidized health. We need to take risks to get America to a positive level cause as if right now, there is a lots of people that are in need that we should care about them. America can’t step down from from this situation that we have in the system. The government makes to make plans and ideas.
“Of course, nothing helps families make ends meet like higher wages. … And to everyone in this Congress who still refuses to raise the minimum wage, I say this: If you truly believe you could work full-time and support a family on less than $15,000 a year, go try it. If not, vote to give millions of the hardest-working people in America a raise.”
Minimum wage is the minimum price you can pay your workers for their time and labor. While workers getting more money may seem like a positive idea, it actually has negative impacts on the economy. If the minimum wage goes too high, due to the increased wage that companies must pay, there will end up being layoffs in companies. They will have to raise their employees wage to a certain amount or higher, but will be unable to do so due to budget. This also results in fewer hirings, making the unemployment rate increase. Also, if the minimum wage is too high, it results in higher prices since companies need to make more money to pay their employees. Lastly, there will be more off-shore hirings, to hire workers for a lower wage. However, a minimum wage that is too low will also harm the economy, since workers are not making enough to support businesses, thus also supporting the economy. It also decreases the quality of life of the worker. Minimum wage has a negative impact on the economy, but can have a positive impact on