The Minimum Wage Must Be Raised Essay - 2993 Words

Los Angeles lawmakers Tuesday voted to boost the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020, the largest city to try to help its lowest-paid workers survive amid the nations growing income inequality. -- Michael Winter, USA TODAY May 19, 2015 Understanding the potential of an increase in today’s minimum wage is the key to understanding the above statement. As a financial mechanism in American society, the minimum wage has helped to sustain generations of workers. Yet, there are two sides to the debate over minimum wage increases. One side—the proponents—feel strongly that low-income workers need some incentive to earn a sufficient living. Conversely, opponents believe that changing the minimum wage does not always help workers and can†¦show more content†¦Other statistics show that minimum wage earners are not single and work full-time. Instead, they have entry-level positions in jobs that require some education and experience (Sherk, 2013). Thus, as history has documented minimum wage workers, it is obvious that they are not all poverty-stricken. In recent news, President Barack Obama has pledged to support an increase to the minimum wage of at least 9 dollars per hour. He also supports indexing the minimum wage according to inflation (Doyle, 2013). This would create an increase in the minimum wage whenever the cost of living rises. During his 2013 State of the Union Address, President Obama â€Å"argued that hiking the minimum wage would improve the lives of millions of workers and their families† (Jamieson, 2013, para. 9). The Obama Administration backs legislation brought to Congress by Senator Tom Harkin and Representative George Miller. Because the two men feel that a hike to $9 would not be enough, they support increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 (Jamieson, 2013). Unfortunately, in March 2013, the House struck down hopes for passing this minimum wage bill for a value of $10.10. Many reasons were given for the event, but, namely, there was division within the Democratic Party (Dinan, 2013). Now, the federal min imum wage remains at $7.25 per hour and this last increase was made back in 2009 (Doyle, 2013). The debate over minimum wage can be found at all levels of society from theShow MoreRelatedThe Minimum Wage Must Be Raised Essay1700 Words   |  7 Pagesamount of time and effort that goes into a daily job, these workers are making minimum wage and are fighting to survive in the current economic state. It is close to impossible for most families to survive without spending paycheck-to-paycheck, as most do. There is a seemingly simple fix for this problem: Raise the minimum wage. Although raising the minimum wage will cause some commotion in this economy, a raise in this wage will help benefit all aspects of our economy and the people who work and supportRead MoreEssay The Minimum Wage For Restaurant Workers Must Be Raised1057 Words   |  5 Pagesexistence of the tipped minimum wage, which since 1991 has stayed set at $2.13 per hour. Not many people even realize that the tipped minimu m wage exists, but according to the DOL, servers in 43 states get paid less than the regular minimum wage hourly based on the assumption that the rest of their wages will come from customer tips. In fact, 22 states pay their tipped workers less than $3 per hour. Although tips can often lead to servers making well over regular minimum wage per hour, overall, tipsRead MoreMinimum Wage And The Wage Essay1204 Words   |  5 PagesThe minimum wage is one of the most controversial issues on our country, which is United States has been facing last ten years. There have been never ending debates over this issue until the government, company, and others party stand together, and raise the minimum wage throughout the nations. There are communities that believe raise the minimum wage has negative impact of every sector of the country. Other communities have different beliefs over the issue, raising the minimum wage helps the poorRead MoreShould Minimum Wage Be Raised?1062 Words   |  5 Pagesever pressing question regarding Minimum wage. Not many subjects can ignite a controversy as quickly as that of whether or not minimum wage should be raised, or by how much should it be raised or if it should remain the same. What is minimum wage? By definition, minimum wage is the minimum hourly wage an employer can pay an employee for work. (â€Å"MinimumWage.com†) America’s minimum wage was first introduced by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938. That minimum wage was introduced as part of the FairRead MoreMinimum Wage Persuasive Essay1106 Words   |  5 Pagesmore than the federal minimum wage? If you said yes then perhaps you are unaware of the many negative effects surrounding a higher minimum wage and after reading this you will be educated on why the minimum wage should not be raised. In the beginning, the minimum wage was created with good intentions. It was originally established in 1938 and was $.25 an hour (Sessions). It was created to make sure that businesses would not take advantage over workers. While the minimum wage was and still is a goodRead MoreShould Minimum Wage Be Raised?870 Words   |  4 PagesShould Minimum Wage Be Raised? Minimum wage has always been a controversial issue. Many politicians use the argument of minimum wage for their own political propaganda. Some may argue minimum wage should be raised, while others believe it will have detrimental effects on our economy if it is raised. Surprising to most people, minimum wage earners make up only a small percent of American workers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, minimum wage workers make up about 2.8% of all workersRead MoreMinimum Wage Should Be Raised1274 Words   |  6 PagesDean Nguyen Mrs. Schmessier Ap English 11 1/31/2015 Minimum Wage Should be Raised to $10.10 Every day at 5:00 AM, June wakes up to prepare breakfast for her two kids. Squeezing the last bit of mayo, she completes two ham and cheese sandwiches. Then June leaves to go to work at Mcdonalds. At about 7, June finishes up wiping the table and gets ready to leave.June goes to the grocery to pick up some grilled chicken and a new bottle of mayo for her family. â€Å"That’ll be $12.68 miss,† says the cash registerRead MoreHistory of Minimum Wage1137 Words   |  5 Pagesdefinition of Minimum Wage is â€Å"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 exploreRead MoreMinimum Wages During 21st Century America1649 Words   |  7 PagesMinimum Wages in 21st Century America In the United States the time has come for the next president to be elected and the political fervor has come early this year with an unconventional, surprisingly interesting primary race. With the coming of a new commander in chief the incessant grilling of the candidates has begun and issues, such as poverty in the United States, are being given the national spot light during debates. The issue of poverty has recently gained traction among citizens as wellRead MoreMinimum Wage Should Be Raised1395 Words   |  6 PagesIn today’s society, minimum wage is an issue. It’s whether or not it should be raised or lowered. This interests almost everyone due to the fact that everyone wants to make money and the amount should reflect the work and skills that are put in. The minimum wage is a major antijobs policy. First things first, the minimum wage buys a lot less than it used to. Only Congress can adjust the federal minimum wage, and it doesn’t necessarily increase with inflation. As a result, its buying power has diminished