Essay on The Debate over Raising the Minimum Wage

The federal minimum wage was raised to $7.25 an hour by Congress in 2009, something that has been carried out only a handful of times since the establishment of the wage in the Fair Labor Standards Act in 1938. Even with this modest rise in income, the minimum wage today does not provide for a decent standard of living. It has failed to keep pace with the wage growth of an average American worker. The minimum wage was intended provide a minimum standard of living; to aid in alleviating poverty and reward one for their work, however, in today’s economy, it fails to live up to these modest goal. Despite the fact that many adults and their families included depend on these wages to make ends meet there exists stiff opposition to any†¦show more content†¦It would appear that the bottom line is more important than the safety and well being of those who help them achieve profitability. This scenario is not mere fantasy but a reality for many in the early ninetieth century, the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Oftentimes, industries and businesses rebuffed any government involvement in their daily activities. They regularly exerted their power, fighting for autonomy in regulating their own practices, and more times than not, were successful. Employees had no bargaining power and were regularly exploited, forced to take any job they could in order to survive (Levin-Waldman, 2009). It was not until the passage of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in 1938, a landmark piece of legislation, that they were afforded any bargaining power at all. This act, in Roosevelt’s words, was designed to put ‘a floor below wages and a ceiling over hours’ (Shierholz, 2009) by establishing a federal minimum wage; twenty five cents at that time. Not much by today’s standards but for workers then, it was actually more than most were being paid. Th e federal minimum wage provided certain protections in the labor market by guaranteeing one could not receive any wage less than that. Additionally, it established a regular work week at forty hours, provided requirements for overtime pay, and prohibited most child labor. For the first time, theShow MoreRelatedEffects of Increasing Minimum Wage Essay988 Words   |  4 Pagesidea of having a federal minimum wage is a good one. The idea is to protect low and unskilled workers from discrimination and allow all workers to earn a living wage. The recent debate on the floor, though, is whether or not to raise the minimum wage from the current $7.25 per hour up to $10.10 per hour. President Barack Obama made this proposal during his annual State of the Union Address on January 28, and following this there were many hot debates about it. The debates focused not only on the advantagesRead MoreEffects of Increasing Minimum Wage794 Words   |  3 Pagesa federal minimum wage is a good one. The idea is to protect low and unskilled workers and allow workers to earn a living wage. The recent debate on the floor, though, is whether or not to raise the minimum wage from the current $7.25 per hour up to $10.10. President Barack Obama made this proposal during his annual State of the Union Address, and after this there were many hot debates about it. The debates focused not only on the pro side and the con side of increasing the minimum wage, but alsoRead MoreThe Debate Over Minimum Wage940 Words   |  4 Pages The debate on raising the minimum wage has been discussed in detail in Congress for the past eighteen months. But as of late, writer William Finnegan suggests, it is â€Å"among the many urgent issues that it [Congress] certainly won’t address.† Though this issue is important, Congress seems to be putting off making any real decision in regards to raising the minimum wage. The bill to raise minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10.10 and hour over a two year period had been thrown around for monthsRead MoreMinimum Wage Should Be Legal1435 Words   |  6 PagesMinimum wage is currently a very heavily debated topic. Many are in favor of raising the current national minimum wage of $7.25 to a more livable wage; suggestions for this increase are anywhere between $9-15 per hour. While the minimum wage has been raised several times throughout the years, it has not been kept proportional to raises in inflation which has led to a decrease in the amount of goods that people are able to buy with those wages, in turn making their economic lives more difficult. ThoseRead MoreMinimum Wage Argument Jack Page 2/26/13 One of the hot topics recently in this country is the600 Words   |  3 PagesMinimum Wage Argument Jack Page 2/26/13 One of the hot topics recently in this country is the question, and debate, of should minimum wage be raised? With both sides wildly arguing about raising the minimum wage being good or bad, and the truth behind whether it will do more good than harm to this country. The question still remains with should it be raised? For supporters of the wage being raised they are excited for what the White House’s Council of Economic Advisors stated. â€Å"White House’s CouncilRead MoreThe Minimum Wage Debate870 Words   |  4 PagesThe minimum wage debate has recently made a large comeback in United States politics. Contemporary studies show over 3.8 million Americans are paid at or below minimum wage (Dickinson 33). Many have looked skeptically back on past wage systems and have questioned wage’s relationship to current market inflation. In response to this inquiry, a large majority of the general population, relatively unrelated to their degree of income, support legislation to increase the minimum. However, the issue hasRead MoreThe Minimum Wage Debate ( Hassett Strain )973 Words   |  4 Pagesthink about minimum wage and what our belief on raising it is, most people think one of two things. People hold to the belief that a raise to the minimum wage good for the economy or it is ba d for the economy. The authors of â€Å"the minimum wage debate† (Hassett Strain, 2013) would attempt to have us look at the debate in another way. In their article they use a number of rhetorical techniques on us to try and have the reader examine why they are in favor of a raise in the minimum wage. Are we in favorRead MoreThe Minimum Wage Debacle1320 Words   |  6 PagesThe Minimum Wage Debacle â€Å"I could be easily replaced by someone tomorrow for less money.† What a dispiriting statement. I was told this from a coworker in October of last year. This coworker has worked for the same grocery store for over twenty years. His remark caused me to formulate many questions about the ethics of business. More specifically though is the question of how this can be a bigger problem than I had originally thought. I have worked many low end jobs, and have seen firstRead MoreThe Minimum Wage Should Not Be Raised1187 Words   |  5 Pagesis that paying a higher minimum wage would help lift people out of poverty by giving those with low paying jobs a higher income, however the evidence suggests otherwise. The 2016 race to the White House heating up, the minimum wage battle is at the forefront of every economic discussion. The rhetoric between candidates within and across party lines is intensifying. Many differing opinions are being heard. As the debate over whether or not to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25/hour to $15/hourRead MoreBenefits Of Working For Minimum Wage907 Words   |  4 Pagestheir employe’s hourly wages based on a minimum wage. Today in America we have many hard workers who are working for minimum wage which consists of $7.25 per hour. There is some businesses that believe all employees should be paid at minimum wage while other businesses pay well over minimum wage. Skills, attitude, responsibility and work ethic all affect how employers base employees hourly wage. When looking at the economy the government should not increase mnimum wages, there are many factors