Kaitlyn Davitt

HELA II
Rager-2
2/19/15

Minimum Wage
Minimum wage is an issue that affects millions of Americans across the country. Gale
defines minimum wage as an hourly wage rate that is set by law (Gale Cengage Learning). The
average minimum wage in 1968 was $10.94, and in 2014 the average minimum wage (set by
federal law) was decreased to around $7.25. Minimum wage is not applicable to those with
disabilities and employees who have the benefit of being tipped. Therefore some people in
America may be receiving even less than the standard federal law requires. This is a dramatic
decrease in income that impacts Americans negatively especially with the cost of living on the
rise.
There are many benefits to increasing the average minimum wage across America. For
example, if a consumers income increases they then can use their money and put it back into our
economy by buying goods and services. Overall this would help the economy expand
exponentially and perhaps even stimulate more jobs when consumer demand increases. Lynn
Woolsey supports this point by saying Higher wages means greater consumer demand, which
helps businesses grow and hire more workers. (Lynn Woolsey). That is a very lucid argument
that supports increasing minimum wage. A person needs a decent amount of money in order to
obtain basic necessities required for a comfortable standard of living. If a person is living off of
only $7.25 an hour, they may not be able to provide what they need for themselves or their
family. A single parent using only one household income (of minimum wage) to provide for
their family, would make feeding more mouths increasingly difficult.

Kaitlyn Davitt
HELA II
Rager-2
2/19/15

Increasing the average minimum wage just by several dollars could reduce poverty
drastically. It is commonly suggested that if minimum wage was raised to at least $10.10, then it
would have long lasting positive impacts on the economy for years to come. Lew Prince of the
company Vintage Vinyl states a higher minimum wage would help the economy, increase
consumer purchasing power, reduce employee turnover, and increase productivity.(Lew Prince).
Small businesses are especially impacted by inadequate minimum wage, because they are mostly
consistent of local employees who may be living from one paycheck to another. Therefore the
extra dollars (if minimum wage were to be increased), would be a few extra thousand dollars a
year. That substantial amount of money could change a person who is barely scraping by, to a
person who can live comfortably with the amount of income they are making. Minimum wage is
directly proportional to this countries level of poverty.
However, for every argument there is a counterargument. Andy Puzder states his
argument some jobs don't produce enough economic value to bear the increase. (Andy
Puzder). The logic behind this argument is with smaller businesses and corporations. If they do
not create enough revenue to meet the demand of workers salary, then they might have to lose
some employees in order to balance the supply of income with the demand. This argument is
very logical, however if you do not have the funds to pay for a 3 dollar increase, then there are
more reasonable resources that the company should be able to cut. Compromising the quality of
life for a few dollars should never be worth the outcome.

Kaitlyn Davitt
HELA II
Rager-2
2/19/15

Overall, increasing minimum wage would be a very reasonable idea that could be
implemented by the federal government. The benefits of increasing minimum wage outweigh the
very few downsides, therefore making it logical to put interest in changing the minimum wage.
Many lives could be changed by just a few more dollars an hour. Isnt it worth it to put our best
foot forward and change the lives of those who need it the most? Businesses and families alike
can be positively impacted by the increase. Whether it is making a business expand, an increase
in job growth, or taking a family out of poverty, minimum wage could become very influential.

Kaitlyn Davitt
HELA II
Rager-2
2/19/15

Prince, Lew. "The American Dream Needs a Fair Minimum Wage." WHITE HOUSE PRESS
RELEASE. 06 Oct. 2014: n.p. SIRS Government Reporter. Web. 18 Feb. 2015.
Meyerson, Harold. "Raise Wages, Create Jobs." Washington Post. 22 May 2014: A.19. SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Feb. 2015.
Silverstein, Michael J. "Smart Businesses Know They Can Earn More by Paying More."
McClatchy - Tribune News Service. 01 May 2014: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Feb.
2015.
Puzder, Andy. "Minimum Wage, Maximum Politics." Wall Street Journal. 06 Oct. 2014: A.17.
SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Feb. 2015.
"Minimum Wage." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2014. Opposing
Viewpoints in Context. Web. 18 Feb. 2015.