Minimum Wage

Minimum Wage

Fireworks were lit once the announcement surfaced the internet that President Obama stated, “Tonight, let's declare that in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty.” (Obama) He was looking to raise minimum wage during his State of the Union address. The average middle class person would be elated that minimum wage was going to rise. The amount of increase would depend on your location. I was one of those people would were excited that minimum wage was going up but then I thought to myself, “If minimum wage for my job with Gap Inc was going to raise to ten dollars and I am currently making that amount as a supervisor then I am back at the bottom of the pyramid.” As much as raising minimum wage sounds like an excellent gesture it is not a good thing. The reason why minimum wage is not a good idea is because fewer jobs will be available, costs of living will be affected, and ultimately the value of the dollar will plummet.

There would be fewer jobs available because when companies hire people it is considered an expense to them. Continuing on the example I used prior with Gap Inc, I am a supervisor making ten dollars an hour in comparison to a sales associate who is making seven dollars and fifty cents. If minimum wage were to rise, Gap Inc has already stated they will not be issuing any raises outside of those who are making already making minimum wage or higher. Therefore I will continue to keep my pay along with the workload I will have. Is that fair? The answer is no. No one will win, just like in my case; since I am a supervisor I will be the second person in line besides managers to receive guaranteed hours. And that is how it will be with every company.

The rise of minimum wage will only force companies to be stricter when it comes to allocating hours to distribute. With time this will only lead to less jobs becoming available because jobs solely cannot afford to hire new people because minimum wage is high. (Stoll) If job employers are not able to hire people because of minimum wage they will now look overseas more than they ever have. Not only will they look overseas for the production of their goods but job employers now have the opportunity to look for another workforce. For example companies like, IBM, Motorola Solutions, and even well known company Hewlett Packer, will now do majority of their business overseas because it is too expensive to produce any goods and have a workforce in the United States. Since those companies are moving their companies offshore it resulted in having to lay off their employees therefore, minimum wage hiring will only add to unemployment. (McCormack)

Minimum wage rising will have an effect on the cost of living. Items that were once everyday purchases will have higher price points. Businesses will see that minimum wage is raising and businesses seeing