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Raising Minimum Wage Essay

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Each year thousands of workers complain that they are not getting paid enough. They want to be able to afford things other than the basic necessities. What they do not know is that if the minimum wage were to be raised, they would be a lot more likely to make even less money- 0$ an hour. The minimum wage has been debated for years. Some say that raising the minimum wage will lift people out of poverty and provide a higher standard of living for everyone. Others believe that doing so would damage the economy and result in the loss of jobs. Raising the minimum wage would be detrimental to the economy, because it would create many problems for businesses and the free market. Raising the minimum wage would have a negative impact on the quality …show more content…

The remaining employees will have to work almost twice as hard for the same pay. Lower skilled employees get fired and the higher skilled ones do not reach their full potential. In a survey conducted by a Duke professor, 60% of companies said they would lay off employees if the minimum wage was raised to $10. 70% of companies said that they would move production outside of the US, firing current American workers (“$10/hour Minimum Wage Would Cause Mass Layoffs”). It would also be harder for immigrants and people with less advantage to find jobs. Companies only hire workers if they are beneficial, and hiring many workers when the minimum wage is high would not be beneficial. This would make it harder for minority groups and immigrants to find jobs in the US, or get used to being a US citizen. Immigrants can also live a better life if they manage to get some working experience, resulting in a better job, but they would not have this opportunity anymore. In addition to that, raising the minimum wage would not do anything to combat poverty. In a study conducted in Los Angeles, where minimum wage is expected to rise to fifteen dollars per hour, housing costs (per month) are also expected to climb an average of $173 (“Minimum Wage and Housing Prices”). Minimum wage workers would have lots of their increase go towards rent, or buying

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