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Positive impact of increasing minimum wage
Positive impact of increasing minimum wage
Positive impact of increasing minimum wage
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Raising the Minimum Wage and The Effects Associated with a Higher Minimum Wage “Raising the minimum wage” has recently been the center of debate nation-wide and has continuously gained support and opposition since President Obama first mentioned it in 2013. As protest groups form in support of raising the minimum wage across the nation, opponents are formulating reasons why an increase hurts the economy, businesses, and the people intended to benefit from the increase. Studies from both sides show compelling differences The first issue that comes up is the effect of a higher minimum wage on small businesses located in rural areas, or small businesses in their infancy. Some studies suggest that a federally mandated increase in the minimum
wage from $7.25 to $15 in New York and other large metropolitan areas would support a livable income; Yet in smaller, rural areas, an increase in the minimum wage would give employees a larger than needed wage, while placing a strain on “ma and pa” employers. This idea is met with an opposing view that suggests such an increase nationwide would bolster smaller businesses’ economy. According to a survey conducted using 800 small business owners, 60% favor a higher minimum wage, stating an increase of cash flow to their low wage employees would help stimulate the economy. This stimulus would in turn affect local businesses in rural areas, not just major employers at huge metropolitan cities. Follow on effects would include possible employment creation opportunities. Increasing minimum wage may cause layoffs due to businesses unable to maximize on profits. It could be said that those looking for the increase in minimum wage would be first ones let go due to businesses keeping those truly worthy of an increase in pay. Those that are kept may be overworked due to a reduction of the workforce and a steady need of consumer services. This may cause those that are being overworked to demand an increase of wages for compensation.
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
“Franklin Roosevelt’s 1937 impassioned speech calling on Congress to help the one-third of Americans who were “ill-housed, ill-clad, and ill-nourished” heralded in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and with it a national minimum wage. Echoes of that speech are still heard today. Senator Edward Kennedy (1989: S14707), in his criticism of the most recent increases in the minimum wage, declared:
Minimum wage is a topic that has been popping up since the 1980s. From whether we should lower it, or even raise it, but now in the 2000s minimum wage has been the center of attention more than ever. There are two sides to this topic of minimum wage; whether it creates more jobs or does not create jobs. Those who argue that raising minimum wage will create more jobs will have a rebuttal which is that it does not only cause the loss of jobs but that it would make things much worse and vice versa for those arguing raising minimum wage will cause loss of jobs. There will be two authors representing opposite views, Nicholas Johnson supporting minimum wage will not cost jobs with his article “ Evidence Shows Raising Minimum Wage Hasn’t Cost Jobs”
Currently, in the United States, the federal minimum wage has been $7.25 for the past six years; however, in 1938 when it first became a law, it was only $0.25. In the United States the federal minimum wage has been raised 22 times since 1938 by a significant amount due to changes in the economy. Minimum wage was created to help America in poverty and consumer power purchasing, but studies have shown that minimum wage increases do not reduce poverty. By increasing the minimum wage, it “will lift some families out of poverty, while other low-skilled workers may lose their jobs, which reduces their income and drops their families into poverty” (Wilson 4). When increasing minimum wage low-skilled, workers living in poor families,
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.
There are opportunities to better the economy of America. Raising the minimum wage is one of those opportunities. Raising the minimum wage can have a positive effect on the country. The minimum wage is not where it ought to be. The minimum wage was higher in the 50’s and 60’s in today’s dollars than it is now. With an increase in minimum wage, people will make more money when working low income part-time or full-time jobs; giving workers more financial stability. The paychecks and yearly salaries of the average low income American family would began to rise. It is an advancement in a conclusively good direction, but it will take time and progressive steps towards a better minimum wage that meets the cost of the necessary standard of living.
President Obama has approved a plan to increase the Federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour by 2016. There are those that believe raising the minimum wage will benefit low wage earners and boost their families over the federal poverty line. However, others believe that it will negatively affect the same group of people it is proposed to help. Many believe unemployment will increase due to less job opportunities and employees being let go, and businesses will be put in danger. Small businesses will be in more danger than large business will be. Majority of small company’s pay their workers the minimum wage, while employees at large businesses are paid by salary. Due to the increase in the federal minimum wage, small businesses will receive less profit for their company, will have to lower their employee count and teenagers will have a decreased opportunity to get an entry level job.
The increase of minimum wage the impact would be more direct for franchises and stores. Although, in the long term the profitability and health of franchises are obviously important.
Many business owners are against the raising of minimum wage because they believe that it will end up hurting the economy more than helping it. The largest concern for business owners is that if there is an increase in minimum wage, then jobs thousands of jobs will be cut, due to smaller businesses not being able to pay the employee's (Mejeur).
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
Large businesses acquire a large amount of profit. When the minimum wage is increased laws would be put into place to force these companies to distribute their wealth evenly to their low-wage workers.
About “75.3 million people ages sixteen and over worked for hourly wages in 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics” (“Minimum Wage”). Meaning almost a quarter of the workforce in this nation are working a minimum wage job. Numerous people believe that these workers are not able to make ends meet, and increasing the minimum wage will help these individuals substantially. Even though people believe that increasing the minimum wage will benefit the society, they tend to overlook the drawbacks of increasing the minimum wage, and how it will prove to be detrimental to the society. People believe that increasing the minimum wage will reduce poverty and improve the living standards of the individuals.
Many areas could be affected by a change in minimum wage, but potentially the most drastic change would be to unemployment. Advocates of a higher minimum wage insist that a raise would significantly decrease the unemployment rate in the United States and improve the quality of living. However, there are conflicting opinions on this. Higher minimum wage would mean higher labor costs for business owners, thus making it more difficult for employers to maintain the amount of workers they have, let alone add new employees. Raising the minimum wage does not increase the value of the worker's labor; it increases the cost of the worker's labor. As a general rule the more something costs, the less of it people will buy. This is true of not only consumer goods but also of workers in the labor market.Many jobs come from large corporations but they also come from small businesses.There are 23 million small businesses in America, accounting for 54% of sales and 55% of jobs. Raising the minimum wage means that all of these corporations and businesses will have to dig deeper in...
Many critics claim that that raising minimum wage increases unemployment, especially for unskilled workers, and harms small businesses, including grocery stores and restaurants. The argument declares that companies such as these rely mostly on unskilled workers for labor, and if the minimum wage increases, then their profits and, therefore, hiring would decline, creating a...
Minimum wage has been a topic that has divided our nation for a while now. Some say there should be an increase in the minimum wage while others say the should not be. In my Argument today, I will be in support for the raising of the minimum wage. If the minimum wage is to be increased, it will provide low-income family with money to spend. Furthermore, the more people spend, the better the economy so raising the minimum wage will boost our economy. And finally, raising the minimum wage will reduce the gab between the rich and the poor, which is also an issue in our nation.