I disagree with Paul Krugman, author of “Raise That Wage,” that raising the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $9.00 an hour would actually be a great idea for the following reasons. Evidence suggests that minimum wage increases tend to reduce job training and the efficiency of businesses. As a result, unemployment rates would rise. The minimum wage policy exemplifies the price floor and supporters of this policy see it as way to increase the incomes of low-skilled workers. However, minimum wages often hurt workers and the economy. Changes in employment and in businesses will result in higher costs. The decision to increase the minimum wage is not cost-free and this something that the government should keep in mind.
Before we move on, Krugman doesn’t fully explain why his reasons and the positive effects of raising the minimum wage would benefit America’s society. He merely states, “But there’s evidence on that question — lots and lots of evidence, because the minimum wage is one of the most studied issues in all of economics” (Krugman). Thus, questioning his credibility.
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"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."
Well, raising the minimum wage has both the pros and cons. Still, the fact that increasing the minimum wage nationwide would increase millions of workers’ earnings is deniable. I suppose that’s why some people advocate raising the minimum wage will grow the economy for everyone. In 2014, the president of the United States, Obama, called on the current Congress to raise the national minimum wage, which proves that Obama actually supports raising the minimum wage. ‘February 2014 Congressional Budget Office Report The Effects of a Minimum-Wage Increase on Employment and Family Income is the latest attempt to do so, in this response to Members of Congress with respect to an increase in the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour.’
This article gives you a yes and no opinion on whether or not the F...
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”
...the national minimum wage have not been followed by increased employment. Looking even closer, Congress raised the minimum wage in 2009 by just over ten percent. This was followed by the loss of over 600,000 jobs for people age sixteen thru nineteen. The rates of low employment for this age group remain extremely low. Similar statistics were recorded for all age groups as relatively unskilled workers of all age groups receive the minimum wage. An argument in favor of minimum wage is that it is a stimulus that introduces new income and spending into the market. But was there more income to spend in 2009 when nearly 600,000 jobs were lost? Common sense says that every dollar a minimum wage worker receives must have come out of somebody else’s pocket, either small business owners or their customers. The money for a higher minimum wage does not come from thin air.
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
"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."
B. The overall poverty rate among Idaho residents climbed to 16.0 percent in 2012, from 11.8 percent in 1999. (U.S. Bureau of the Census)
Some think that the minimum wage should not be raised, but others think that the minimum wage should be raised. If one had to be chosen, raising the minimum wage would be better. The minimum wage should be raised because if you were to work full time on minimum wage, you are below the poverty line; Also states that did raise the minimum wage above the federal standard have had more job growth than states that did not. Finally, "Minimum wage workers are much more likely to immediately go out and spend that extra money in the economy," says Heidi Shierholz of the Economic Policy Institute, which favors raising the minimum. "That's because they're often living paycheck to paycheck."
"Raising the minimum wage will benefit about 28 million workers across the country. And it will help businesses, too - raising the wage will put more money in people's pockets, which they will pump back into the economy by spending it on goods and services in their communities." -- President Obama
Raising the minimum will end up hurting Americans more than helping them. The people that are for raising minimum wage are people who believe that increasing minimum wage can help those people who are unskilled and need an income they can live on. Yet, raising minimum wage would do the opposite and make employers have to fire people who earn minimum wage, because they can't afford the higher wages. People need to realize that increasing the minimum wage would hurt people more than help them. In the end increasing minimum wage would result in some people being let go, for the reason, businesses can't afford paying them minimum wage anymore.
America is currently working on the issue of whether the minimum wage should be increased from $7.25 to $10.10 and economists are studying the effects of the possible increase. Minimum wage workers deal with struggles such as affording health care, paying for education, providing food for their families, putting many hours of work in while making little income and paying their bills. America’s decision to raise the minimum wage would help low wage workers to make higher incomes and would overall strengthen the economy, pulling Americans out of poverty. Americans may hold a minimum wage job if they do not have money to attend a college or university to obtain a degree in order to find a career.
The minimum wage being too low has been a public issue in America for generations. Basically, the debate includes two different opinions. Firstly, people who want to raise the minimum wage, and second, people who would rather is stay the same. The overwhelming majority of liberals are on the side that favors a raise. Additionally, a somewhat smaller proportion of conservatives favor the change as well, but for different reasons. The liberal opinion on raising the minimum wage is based on the idea that putting more money in the people’s pockets, will stimulate the economy, and decrease poverty. The problem that conservatives and liberals alike have with this, is that a few direct consequences are proven to apply when raising wages. Some proposed consequences include unemployment, inflation, and unfairness to higher educated people. Another main point is that raising the minimum wage is thought to helps small business by increasing worker satisfaction. This issue of minimum wage has become increasingly popular and important in current times, as president Obama has proposed the idea of raising the minimum wage of contract workers to 10.10$ per hour (about a 30% increase from the current 7.25$ per hour minimum wage). A large number of people consider this wage hike unnecessary due to the fact that today’s value of minimum is higher than it has ever been since the 80’s, and because the wage hike comes at too high of a cost. All things considered, the issue of raising minimum wage is not a battle of political parties and their agendas, its really a debate between everyone.
The minimum wage should vary based on the location of where you are living. Certain places are more expensive to live in so the minimum wage should be slightly increased to secure that all workers have a place to live in. The minimum wage should not be increased to $15 dollars an hour because that will cause many problems in the future. Unemployment will began to increase because managers and store owners will find ways to decrease the employee staff and still have just enough employees to efficiently run things. For example Fast Food employees who do the same job that does not require much effort, should not earn the same amount as people who work and do Hard Labor who barely earn above minimum wage. Another reason raising Minimum wage would be a bad idea is inflation will most likely occur. Prices on food, rent and other necessities will take on some certain percentage increase which will cause people to not be as
Bernstein, Jared. “Would Raising the Minimum Wage Harm the Economy?” The CQ Researcher 16 Dec. 2005:1069.