Obama Proposes Raising Minimum Wage

            

OBAMA PROPOSES 

RAISING MINIMUM WAGE

  





At first glance Obama’s proposed legislation to raise minimum wage looks like a pretty wonderful solution to a lot of our lower class economic problems.  As Obama stated in his State of the Union Address, raising the minimum wage “could mean the difference between groceries or the food bank; rent or eviction; scraping by or finally getting ahead.”  President Obama proposed Congress raise minimum wage from $7.25-$9.00.  The top one percent of income earners has doubled, to 20 percent in 2011 from 10 percent in 1980.  According to an analysis conducted by the Economic Policy Institute, between 1980 and 2008 the top 10 percent income level people earned 98 percent of all income gains.  Obama stated that “working folks shouldn’t have to wait year after year for the minimum wage to go up while C.E.O. pay has never been higher.” If minimum wage grew at the same rate that CEO salaries and profits have for the last forty years that our minimum wage would be closer to twenty-three dollars an hour. A full time worker earning minimum wage earns only $15,080 a year.  That is without any vacation time or sick days, and is below the poverty line.  “Let’s declare that in the wealthiest nation on earth, no one who works full time should have to live in poverty.”           



       

But at what cost would this be to American jobs?  Many people argue that this may be dangerous not only to the creation of jobs, but also maintaining current jobs.  This is worrysome to many people because of the already high unemployment rates.  Increasing the minimum wage would greatly affect the cost of doing business for those that employ mostly low income hourly workers.  The more expensive for both small and large companies to hire, some economists argue that higher minimum wages increase the unemployment rate.

I do believe that raising the minimum wage would greatly benefit the economy.  The more people earn, the more money they can put into the economy and the more our economy thrives.  I don’t think we will see as much jobs loss as people think because people need employees to work.  I can’t imagine businesses cutting back on production and business, rather than hiring and maintaining workers.

Christine Owens, the executive director of the National Employment Law Project, said in a statement. “A higher minimum wage is key to getting the economy back on track for working people and the middle class. The president’s remarks also cement the growing consensus on the left and right that one of the best ways to get the economy going again is to put money in the pockets of people who work.”

Business publication: http://business.time.com/2013/02/14/obamas-proposal-to-boost-the-minimum-wage-will-it-help-or-hurt-workers/?iid=tsmodule

News paper: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/13/us/politics/obama-pushes-for-increase-in-federal-minimum-wage.html

Blogs: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/13/obama-minimum-wage_n_2674468.html

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/13/1187007/-President-Obama-to-Raise-Minimum-Wage

 Public News: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/white_house/jan-june13/sotu_02-13.html