Minimum Wage Research Paper
M. Burke
Composition II
15, April, 2013
The True Affects of Minimum Wage
With voters seeking a bulwark against the Great Depression, wage-hour legislation was an issue in the 1936 Presidential race. On the campaign trail, a young girl handed a note to one of Franklin Roosevelt's aides asking for help: "I wish you could do something to help us girls," it read. "Up to a few months ago we were getting our minimum pay of $11 a week...Today the 200 of us girls have been cut down to $4 and $5 and $6 a week.” Roosevelt rode back into office in part on a promise to seek a constitutional way of protecting workers; in 1923, the Supreme Court had struck down a Washington, D.C., minimum-wage law, finding it impeded a worker's right to set his own …show more content…
For example, Susan wants to clean your car for 30 dollars, and if your car needs it, you might choose to employ her for $30, maybe even $50. But what happens when she starts to charge $100, $200,or even $1000? That job will no longer be created. Why? You value your $100 more than the service being provided, in this case, your car being cleaned. It is impossible to sustain employing anyone doing work, which is valued less than the wage they are being paid. The minimum wage is supposed to help the poorer, less skilled, and younger workers in the economy, but it doesn’t. It gets them fired. How many jobs would be lost if entrepreneurs were forced to only hire people who’s labor they valued at $20 an hour. Or even $50. Or even $100. Sure, some very highly skilled workers wouldn’t be affected by a $100 dollar minimum wage increase, but the rest of the workforce would be unemployed because they’re wage would too valuable than their services. If the minimum wage is fundamentally sound, we should be able to increase it without fear of hurting the economy. When employment cost increases, entrepreneurs can pick one of two choices. They can reduce the amount of people they employ, or raise the cost of the goods they are providing, otherwise, they are losing money. This makes the minimum wage a double whammy, even if you don’t lose your job when minimum wage increases, you and everyone else are forced to pay for more expensive goods and services provided by entrepreneurs who instead of firing employees they couldn’t afford, raised prices of their goods and services. That is the epitome of counter productivity. Try to keep in mind who is most affected by these rising prices. It’s the low wage worker, and the very people minimum wage is supposed to be saving. In a free market economy, employment is a win, win, win. Employers win because the value created by their
Composition II
15, April, 2013
The True Affects of Minimum Wage
With voters seeking a bulwark against the Great Depression, wage-hour legislation was an issue in the 1936 Presidential race. On the campaign trail, a young girl handed a note to one of Franklin Roosevelt's aides asking for help: "I wish you could do something to help us girls," it read. "Up to a few months ago we were getting our minimum pay of $11 a week...Today the 200 of us girls have been cut down to $4 and $5 and $6 a week.” Roosevelt rode back into office in part on a promise to seek a constitutional way of protecting workers; in 1923, the Supreme Court had struck down a Washington, D.C., minimum-wage law, finding it impeded a worker's right to set his own …show more content…
For example, Susan wants to clean your car for 30 dollars, and if your car needs it, you might choose to employ her for $30, maybe even $50. But what happens when she starts to charge $100, $200,or even $1000? That job will no longer be created. Why? You value your $100 more than the service being provided, in this case, your car being cleaned. It is impossible to sustain employing anyone doing work, which is valued less than the wage they are being paid. The minimum wage is supposed to help the poorer, less skilled, and younger workers in the economy, but it doesn’t. It gets them fired. How many jobs would be lost if entrepreneurs were forced to only hire people who’s labor they valued at $20 an hour. Or even $50. Or even $100. Sure, some very highly skilled workers wouldn’t be affected by a $100 dollar minimum wage increase, but the rest of the workforce would be unemployed because they’re wage would too valuable than their services. If the minimum wage is fundamentally sound, we should be able to increase it without fear of hurting the economy. When employment cost increases, entrepreneurs can pick one of two choices. They can reduce the amount of people they employ, or raise the cost of the goods they are providing, otherwise, they are losing money. This makes the minimum wage a double whammy, even if you don’t lose your job when minimum wage increases, you and everyone else are forced to pay for more expensive goods and services provided by entrepreneurs who instead of firing employees they couldn’t afford, raised prices of their goods and services. That is the epitome of counter productivity. Try to keep in mind who is most affected by these rising prices. It’s the low wage worker, and the very people minimum wage is supposed to be saving. In a free market economy, employment is a win, win, win. Employers win because the value created by their