Congress Should Raise Minimum Wage

The ethical issue surfaced as this will benefit some at the expense of other. Washington has the nation’s highest minimum wage at $9.19 per hour. Seattle is set to raise the minimum wage even further, to $15 per hour. More than fifteen millions people work for a minimum wage, which lead to about fifteen thousand dollars a year. These workers would earn a lilt bit below the poverty line for a family of two (Blankinship).

Consequently, many businesses will do this when minimum wage is increased due to increase in expenses by it to keep the business running. According to Olivo, a business owner of a small printing press in New Jersey, states that increase in minimum wage will increases his expenses; therefore, he either has to reduce his expenses by “cutting employees, not hiring new employees, or bring in new technology to decrease the number of employees he needs” (“Raising…”). Some statistics has proven this kind of event happening on where increasing minimum wage will also increase unemployment. For instance, Congress enacted a minimum wage increase in 1974 and unemployment has risen from 5.1% to 9.0% in 13 months (Jaarda). Furthermore, Congress again raised the minimum wage in 1978 for four years and unemployment went from 6.4% to 10.8% (Jaarda).

Moreover, the wage increase would increase the consumer’s purchasing authority and restore the economy. It would also help to big businesses from underpaying its hard working employees. A raise in the minimum wage, however, has historically had a negative blowback on the unemployment rate. When minimum wages were changed from 1967 to 1968, the unemployment rate went from 3% to 3.6%.4 The unemployment rate, however, began dropping back down from 1968 to 1969. We saw a similar unemployment rate spike and settle when the minimum wage was raised in 1996 and 1997.

The majority of America would like to see the minimum wage raise from $7.25 an hour, to $10.10 which is almost a forty percent increase in hourly rate. A decision this big that will affect the entire country must be intensively discussed and debated before it is put into action. In an economy consisting of unemployment rates at their highest in decades, one would think that this would be a good action to take, but the consequences of doing so show otherwise. President Obama and the Democratic party are lead supporters of the idea to raise the minimum wage to help out those families living below the poverty line, but it will do as much harm as it will do good. "President Obama's call to raise the federal minimum wage could help lift 900,000 workers out of poverty, but at a cost of as many as 500,000 jobs" (Davis).

There are a couple explanations making a connection between increasing the minimum wage will create job opportunities in the united states. The key is that “poor and middle class families tend to spend more of their income than the wealthy, since they 're often struggling to meet basic needs” (Jordan Weissmann n.pag). So by taking money from businesses and giving it to their worst paid employees, raising the minimum wage might, in theory, increase consumer spending,which in turn boosts the economy and creates more jobs opportunities. According to the Economic Policy Institute, raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour “should increase wages by $35 billion and boost economic activity by $22 billion—which by their account is enough to create those 85,000 jobs” (Jordan Weissmann

However, the issue has split into a bipartisan debate in Washington. Liberal ideals stem from the belief that raising the minimum wage is positive and helps close the income gap; alternatively, conservatives feel raising the minimum wage causes unnecessary harm to employment demographics. Raising the minimum wage is a necessary course of action to aid the bottom half of an economically dynamic society. Raising the minimum wage is a simple and effective way to reduce income inequality. Over the past thirty years, the depreciation of the minimum wage has contributed to a ten to twenty percent increase in income inequality (“President Obama’s” 12).

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.

These changes come after years of debate to raise the minimum wage so family can earn a living on minimum wages. The federal US minimum wage was first established during the depression and was rise from .25 cent to 7.25 per hour since it was organized in 1938. Increasing the minimum wage may have collision beyond adding more cash to workers pocket. Authority assert that the real effects on minimum wages increases a lot of negative thing to happen like hurting

It needs to be raised to a living wage for people to provide for their families without having to starve and live on food stamps. These are some reasons why I think the minimum wage should be raised. Obviously minimum wage has increased significantly since 1968 where it was at $1.60 but, how much has it really increased in connection with inflation and rising prices of things such as food, gas, land and etc? That is what's really lost in the whole conversation of increasing minimum wage to give people more money doesn't necessarily mean you can buy more. Senator Tom Harkin made a great statement regarding inflation senator Harkin said "today, tens of millions of hardworking Americans who are earning at or near the minimum wage can’t even aspire to live a middle-class life or achieve the American Dream.

"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." -- Paul Tonko 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).