Persuasive Speech For Raising Minimum Wage

One of the biggest political topics in today's society is the federal minimum wage and whether it should be raised or kept at where it is now at $7.25 an hour. Arguments could be made for both sides on whether it should be raised or left alone. The majority of minimum wage in today’s job market are unskilled positions. Minimum wage jobs were created for teenagers and colleges kids as a way to get into the workforce and to have a little extra money for themselves. It was not designed to be a wage for people to live on. Increasing the minimum wage would hurt the economy by hurting small businesses, a huge loss of jobs and it would increase the competition between teens and adults. Overall if the federal minimum wage is increased it will have many negative effects on the economy.

“According to a 2015 report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a worker must earn at least $15.50 an hour (over twice the federal minimum wage) to be able to afford to rent a "modest" one-bedroom apartment, and $19.35 for a two-bedroom unit (more than 2.5 times the minimum wage).” The report stated: "In no state can an individual working a typical 40-hour work week at the federal minimum wage afford a one-or two-bedroom apartment for his or her family." It is obvious to conclude that minimum wage is a problem, but what solutions can be produced to fix it? “A survey by the Small Business Network found that 82% of small businesses agreed that "’the government should not be setting wage rates.’” This statement shows how conservative business owners are about their money. If they want to decrease the minimum wage past what it is already, then there’s a serious conflict. These workers are barely making a living, and if they are affected negatively anymore, they are in serious trouble.

In the United States of America, federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. This is an issue, nation wide because the price of living is increasing, while the pay has not. Teenagers are not the only people that are getting paid this amount, adults that are considered the “bread winners” are too, and struggling with it. Supposing that the living wage was increased, the cost of living would be more manageable, and less stressful for many. Hundreds of thousands of people are living in poverty, since they are making the bare minimum and unable to support themselves or their family. If federal minimum wage was increased significantly, then people working forty hours per week would be well above the poverty line, and able to support themselves, easily.

In the United States, the cost of living for a single adult with no children is an average of $28,474 every year (Career Trends, screen 1). This seems like a relatively low number, until the amount of people living together increases. A family of six, two adults and four children, rises to an annual cost of $82,900 (Career Trends, screen1). If an adult were to work full-time at minimum wage, they would only be getting $15,080 per year from their employer (University of California, screen 1). This amount of money is still about $14,000 short of how much it costs a single adult to live. In recent discussions of minimum wage, many people argue about whether it should be raised or not. Although the intentions to raise it are good, the outcome

The increase of minimum wage could lead to a better quality of life. Many had lived barely paying for the minimal necessities such as shelter, food, water, clothes, etc. The topic of

The issue of the minimum wage has recently come to the forefront of the debate on social policy. There is much disagreement over the wisdom of an increase in the minimum wage in the current fragile economic recovery. Some argue that a dramatic increase is what is needed in order to lift the standard of living for those in the bottom of the economic pyramid. Economists reason that the basic principle of supply and demand mandates than an increase in the wage would result in the loss of available jobs. Small businesses maintain that it would spell their doom.

I have been in the workforce for many years and have just recently enrolled at SNHU to finish my Business Degree. Most of my working career has been in management where I have personally hired over 350 employees over the years and truly understand that a person’s salary must be synchronized to the value that an individual brings to your company. The lower the wage the less important this really is, the higher the wage the more value that they have to bring to the table. As the minimum wage increases so must the abilities, skills and education level of the worker. My persuasive essay “The Economics Against a Federally Mandated Minimum Wage” presented many challenges since the issue impacts not only the worker but the business and the unemployed as well. I found this to be a very complex issue and required a great deal of extensive research and evaluation in order to find strong supporting evidence and articles that would support my position.

In 1968, a minimum-wage income was enough to keep a family of three above the poverty line. Today, a person would have to work, full-time, 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year and make $10.10 per hour to keep a family of three above the poverty line. (U.S. Department of Labor)

No one can expect a family to live on such little income, and to be able to pay for all of the expenses of living. Those expenses would include housing, water, electric, food, clothing, and day care service if need. The amount a minimum wage worker would make in a year is $14,500. This amount is way below average; the average income is around $60,000. Compare quick and one will shortly realize that the current minimum is obviously much to low. Increase in the minimum wage is needed.

wage debate in the United States argues if the current hourly rate of $7.25 is a livable wage in

The rent is too damn high! At least that’s what the slogan of “Rent is too damn high” political party reads. As its name implies, “Rent Is Too Damn High” Party is that rents in the city of New York are too costly. However this issue goes beyond greedy landlords; in fact it starts with one simple statement: The federal minimum wage in America is simply too low. According to a national study in 2015, for a family to be just above the poverty level, the head of the house would be required to earn 8.50 an hour, while the current federal minimum wage is 7.25. Not only does the current minimum wage not cover the poverty line, it is more than a dollar less than current poverty levels. A raise in the minimum wage would reduce the number of working Americans who are below the poverty line, decrease unemployment, and help stimulate the economy.

Significance (why important to them?): A lot of people believe that because you 're getting paid a higher minimum wage that it’s benefiting you but in reality that’s not the case. The purpose of my speech is to persuade you to support the non-rising of minimum wage.

2. According to a study by the U.S. Conference of Mayors in 1998, a minimum wage worker would have to work 87 hours a week to afford a two bedroom apartment.

Minimum wage in the United States has become an extremely controversial topic in today’s society. The cost of living continues to grow each year but why does the minimum wage stay the same? This is a question that many people are forced to ask themselves each day. Many people who hold low income jobs and can barley afford to survive must rely on government assistants. By raising the minimum wage to an amount that would allow citizens to afford living standards our nations economy would benefit greatly in many ways. The increased wages would in return be put back into the economy through spending and government aid would decrease. The increase wages would also allow for more paid taxes that would in return benefit the economy as a whole. Many of us have held a minimum wage job or know someone directly who has, we are aware of the struggle in receiving minimum wage checks but why has nothing been done to remove this struggle from the nation? Many bills including one signed by President Obama have been denied by congress and the issue continues to grow. Now is the time to increase the minimum wage and help the economy get back to a better state.

The poverty levels in America are a major problem. The cost of things like rent and education have risen dramatically in the recent years, making it difficult not only to live, but also to become a skilled worker with a lot to offer companies. Unfortunately, minimum wage has not kept up with rapidly rising prices. People working on minimum wage cannot support themselves, much less a family. Many think that the problem can be easily solved with a raise in federal minimum wage, but those people fail to understand the many trade-offs that would accompany. Not only would a minimum wage raise to 15$ have a major effect on employers costs and the cost of goods, but it would also cause a major rise in unemployment(Gitis and Holtz-Eakin). A raise in minimum wage would not only fail to move the lower class out of poverty, but would have adverse effects on the majority of them.