Minimum Wage Increase And The Effects On Family Poverty

Minimum wage has been a topic that has caused mixed feelings from all parts of the United States and other countries and it continues to be a topic of interest to many. There are some that feel minimum wage it is not high enough to survive, while others feel if minimum wage is raised, so will the cost of goods, such as food, housing and cost of living in general, resulting in no change regardless of increase. There are many families that are living off minimum wage and can barely survive on it. The majority of these families are on either on government assistance and considered in the poverty lines thus impacting the lower class American population the most, or they are single mothers raising their families on one income. The purpose of†¦show more content†¦Department of Labor, 2017). These rates only cover the federal minimum wage, there are some states and even cities, that have their own minimum wage law, which is higher than the federal level. For an example, San Franc isco’s minimum wage is $12.25 and is expected to rise July 2018 to $15 an hour (Bose, 2017), while in Houston Texas the minimum wage is at the federal minimum wage level $7.25 an hour (Howlin, 2013 par. 2). The way the federal minimum wage works is that if a state’s minimum wage is lower than the federal minimum wage level than the federal minimum wage automatically will apply for that state. The reason minimum wage was put into place was to stop business’s overworking and underpaying individuals. This is a benefit for the working class because companies and businesses would not be able to take advantage of these individuals who are in need of jobs and willing to work for next to nothing in order to make ends meet. According to the article, Minimum wage or ‘living’ wage? (2003), the author, McCrate provided an example that in the year 2000, in order for a two-parent, two-job, and two-child family home to ensure their basic needs were met, they would have had to require to make at least $10.38 an hour, in the state of Minnesota. In Urban Vermont, a single parent with two children and health care benefits would have needed $19.70. These statistics are not even consideringShow MoreRelatedSunday, July 24, 2016, Marks Seven Years Since The Last1539 Words   |  7 Pagesfederal minimum wage was raised (U.S. Department of Labor). Since raised, the cost of living has increased by nearly 12 percent. When President Obama called for an increase in 2013 19 states, have raised their minimum wage between $8.15 and $11.00. But is the hike beneficial to everyone? According to conventional economic analysis, increasing the minimum wage reduces employment in two ways. First, higher wages increase the cost to employers of producing goods and services. 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