Minimum Wage Debate Essay

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Minimum Wage debate

Around 13 percent of people are below the national poverty line which is over 40 million people so why is the minimum wage still far below $15 an hour? The main worries that people have about raising the minimum wage are inflation and more competitive job markets. While many companies already pay their employees $15 an hour, companies that don’t currently follow this will need to increase their prices or cut employees to make up for increased pay. On the other hand, increased pay would also help families below the poverty line and it also would help the economy by giving underpaid workers more money. With the extra money, it’ll allow underpaid workers to purchase things other than necessities. Furthermore, it will support …show more content…

If companies raised their wages they would see some form of an increase in productivity. When pay was increased for a study that researched how pay affected work efforts it was found that with a higher wage “Employees work harder per hour,” (Nicol Persico). A higher minimum wage could also motivate unemployed people to work harder at getting a job. There are many people in the U.S. who don’t believes it is worth it to get a job and would rather try to live off of unemployment or other government support. Higher pay would make it more incentivizing to get a job which could help boost the economy. According to the congressional budget office, “Changes in employment would be seen in the number of jobless workers… those who have dropped out of the labor force (for example, because they believe no jobs are available for …show more content…

J.B Maverick states that “for some unfortunate people it can also cause Job loss and a more competitive job market”. Companies are always looking for ways to save money, and if they are forced to give employees raises it will cause companies to fire employees that aren’t deemed necessary enough for the pay they would be getting. According to the congressional budget office, Some people could be heavily affected by the wage increase and stay unemployed permanently while others might come and go making a higher wage than they use to while they work. Raising the minimum wage will also cause a more competitive job market as people will be trying to get new jobs or are reinspired to get jobs after leaving the