Time to raise the minumum wage to $11.50

It is time to raise the minumum wage to at least $11.50. The wage has steadily declined due to inflation since 2004 when it was set at $7.25. The minimum wage is an arbitrary wage which has no relations to any standard. It is below a basic survival wage. No one who makes minimum wage could actually live off that wage alone. Instead, thanks to food stamps(SNAP) and medicaid, many can have a basic life.




It is time give the people a little more. It is time for a general increase in the minimum wage.

The minimum wage is a floor for all labor activities in the US. It sets the standard for the baseline wage for which all ultimately almost all Americans work. The wage portion of GDP is at it's lowest ever, while corporate profits have never been higher.

Raising the minumum wage is an effective way to get money into the pockets of those who need it most. It also rewards work. It also get a little inflation going to help the economy grow.

Many worry that raising the minimum wage will increase unemployment. The minimum wage has been proven to have little effect on employment levels, while greatly increasing the money in the pockets of the poor. Most studies show some small, direct impact on teenage, immigrant and marginal worker employment. Yet the same studies fail to account for the additional jobs from the increased spending of minimum wage earners.

Another reason the minimum wage has little effect on the number of jobs is that most employers pay above the minimum wage. Second, is that employers consider much than the wage rate when hiring. They consider whether they can do the job, how reliable they are, and do we have the demand to support a new position.

Several cities have raised the wage to $10 bucks, the largest being San Francisco, with little effect on the local employment. Now is the time to raise the wage to a decent level, get a little inflation going, and help out the poor.

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