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Federal Minimum Wage Essay

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Federal Minimum Wage In 1938, the federal minimum wage was established by Congress under the Fair Labor Standards Act, initially set at $0.25 an hour. President Franklin D. Roosevelt passed it as part of the New Deal to protect workers during the Great Depression. An increase in the federal minimum wage has been an ongoing subject of controversy in the US, because of the perceived gap between the actual minimum wage and the need for a true “living wage.” Congress has kept the federal minimum wage the same since 2009 when it went from $6.55 to $7.25. It has been nearly 14 years since the last increase in the federal minimum wage. To begin with, raising the minimum wage to match inflation and productivity would benefit the economy by increasing consumer activity and stimulating job growth while lowering the federal deficit. A journalist summarizes, “The federal …show more content…

. . The current value of the minimum wage in real dollars is at its lowest level since February 1956, when the lowest U.S. wage was 75 cents — the equivalent of $7.19 in June 2022 dollars” (Cerullo). The increase in the federal minimum wage and adjusting the price to compare with inflation would ensure that low-wage workers could adopt a standard of living that is equivalent to the current economy. The federal minimum wage should also be increased as it will allow minimum wage workers to afford basic living expenses. Currently, the minimum wage is not enough for people to afford housing and other necessities. Statistics show, “In 2022, a full-time worker needs to earn an hourly wage of $25.82 on average to afford a modest, two-bedroom rental home in the U.S. This… is $18.57 higher than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 . . . A full-time worker needs to earn an hourly wage of $21.25 on average in order to afford a modest one-bedroom rental home in the U.S.” (National Low Income Housing Coalition). Another study also found a $1.75

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The State of Texas should follow the lead of other states across the country and begin to raise the minimum wage in increments. While it does not appear the federal minimum wage will be raised in the near future, Texas can act to assist the citizens of this state by raising the minimum wage. This should be done to accommodate for the growing inflation and productivity, provide the necessary income for individuals to provide for their family, and to reduce the need for government assistance programs. In 1968, the minimum wage was $1.60 and was $10.75 in today’s money.

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The federal minimum wage should be increased because raising it would increase the economic activity and spur job growth, decrease poverty, and also improvements in productivity and economic growth have outpaced increases in the minimum wage. Increases in job growth and economic activity will happen when the minimum wage is elevated. If the minimum wage was increased it will “inject 22.1 billion net into the economy and create about 85,000 new jobs over a three year period”. (“Raising the Federal minimum Wage to $10.10 Would Lift Wages for Millions and Provide a Modest Economic Boost") Thousands of new jobs will be created and it will put billions of dollars into the economy.

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Raising minimum wage in the United States would benefit over twenty eight million workers. Raising minimum wage would help businesses and would also give workers with minimum wage salaries more money then just enough to get by. The money these workers earn will go into businesses in and near their communities. Also the cost of living wages have increased throughout the years. With a minimum wage salary you have to work a forty hour work week without paying more than thirty percent of their income.

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Introduction More numbers of state are joining to take action to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour in a few years even though there is a high disputing controversial all over the nation. The federal has set the minimum wage level to $7.25 on Jan. 1, 2015. In less than a year the index number of the minimum wage is going up automatically with cost of living. And eventually it will be likely to increase year by year with automatic and expectation index.

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