In some states where there is a high cost of living, such as New York, minimum wage is not livable wage
In some states where there is a high cost of living, such as New York, minimum wage is not livable wage. The increase of the minimum wage would have a negative impact on the labor force (Gwartney, et al., 2018). The effects on the labor force would vary from location to location.
Although minimum wage is needed, at a federal level, an increase may be hard to digest. A change to the minimum wage at a more local level may lead to a better framed argument. In the Tualatin Hills Park District of Oregon, they implemented a minimum wage increase from $12 to $15 an hour. This increase led to an increase in the state budget from $500,000 to $2.7 million (Iracki, 2020). Not only did the increase in minimum wage help the workers, it was also able to build tax revenue (Iracki, 2020).
The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25. As of 2011, there were 4 million workers in America who were working off the books and being paid below minimum wage. A study that took place in 2012 shows that the majority (78%) of workers making minimum wage work at least 2 hours a week with 80% of these workers being 20 years of age or older (Iracki, 2020). The population of The United States is over 330 million people (United States Census Bureau, 2020). Approximately .005% of the population is earning minimum wage. With the potential negative economic impact that could be felt with an increase of minimum wage, I would not risk the potential negative impact.
Resources:
Iracki, A. (2020). Revisiting Minimum Wage Increases: Park and recreation professionals talk budgets and staff pay five years later. Parks & Recreation, 44–47.
Gwartney, J. A., Stroup, R. L., Sobel, R. L., & Macpherson, D. A. (2018). Macroeconomics: Private and public choice (16th ed.). Retrieved from https://www.cengage.com
Debt.org, n.d. retrieved from https://www.debt.org/jobs/minimum-wage/United States Census Bureau, 2020, U.S. and World Population Clock. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/popclock/
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