The Minimum Wage Should Not Be Increased

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Although many Americans believe an increase in the minimum wage is always a positive step for the federal government to take, the most recent wage hike could result in some harmful effects.

One group potentially hurt by the increased minimum wage is teen-aged workers. Four hundred and eighty thousand teen jobs have been lost due to Congress putting the wage hike into place in 2007 (New Ad Campaign). In 2008, the months June through August, only 32.7 percent of teens had jobs. This is down from 45 percent in June through August 2000, stated by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Petrecca). In the last 17 years unemployment for American teens has increased a great amount. Presently the unemployment rate is at 24 percent. In one year alone that percent has increased nearly 12 percent. Other ethnicities, such as African Americans, are also feeling the effects of unemployment. Currently the unemployment rate for African American teens is 37.9 percent; that’s four times the National average. These groups of African American teens have been hit the hardest with the unemployment rate increasing 27 percent in one year. According to Kristen Lopez Eastlick, Senior Research Analyst for the Employment Policies Institute, “The unintended consequence of the federal minimum wage hike is pricing some employees out of the workforce, and based on the recent unemployment data, it’s teens-minority teens especially-who are getting hit the hardest” (Are Summer Jobs). John Silva, chief economist at Wells Fargo said, “It’s tough timing”, he anticipates that teenagers and those who are less qualified will have the hardest time finding work. “You’re going to have a very negative response.

In a recession like this, companies don’t have the pricing power to pass on those costs” (Maher). Congress increasing minimum wage was meant to help those people who are getting paid right at the minimum wage level. But, if people can’t even get a job that pays minimum wage then the new law is hurting more than it’s helping.

Works Cited

“Are Summer Jobs ‘Going Out of Business?” Science Letter 21 July 2009: 2887.

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