The company can also allow a position to go unfilled for a time to increase its leverage; the unskilled worker would starve trying to stall for a higher wage. This again invalidates the argument that the free market can set wages effectively -- it cannot given the imbalance of bargaining power between workers and businesses. The minimum wage serves a specific economic role of balancing the bargaining power between workers and businesses.
One must also take into consideration the effect that the minimum wage has on the overall economy, and what would change if the minimum wage was abolished. By providing workers with a guaranteed living wage, the minimum wage ensures that they are able to purchase goods and services. Without a living wage, they would not purchase to the same level. If the minimum wage was abolished, companies would not lower the prices to reflect lower costs; rather, they would pocket the difference. Thus, the economy would lose consumer purchasing power and it would not be offset with lower prices. Whatever case there might be for not establishing a minimum wage in the first place, clearly once it is in place it should be maintained to avoid such negative economic consequences.
There are arguments on both sides of the minimum wage debate. However, for both social and economic reasons, the minimum wage should be maintained. The case for abolishing the minimum wage rests on economic orthodoxy that simply does not withstand real world scrutiny. Socially, America is a better country when its children have the opportunity to focus on education, rather than...
Minimum Wage Even though minimum wage has been around for many years, and was established to make sure that working people could survive and pay their bills, there are still many problems with it. This paper address both the pros and cons to raising the minimum wage, discussing not only how people can be helped by the increase in pay, but also how they are ultimately hurt by it to a
Minimum Wage Why the minimum wage should not be abolished in the United States. There are diverse issues that have been debated by politicians and critics concerning the minimum wage in the United States. Some say that the minimum wage causes an increase in the unemployment rate. In turn, it causes negative effects on the nation's economy. However, the truth on this proposition is still to be proven yet. Taking the side
Opponents have failed to take into account the demand and supply side of the argument. It is true that minimum wage legislation has increased people's purchasing power but this positive impact of the law is likely to improve economic activity in the country. This is because when people have more purchasing power naturally they can afford more goods and thus increased demand of goods leads to increased supply and this
2% of minimum wage earners are household heads and only 2.8% of low-wage earners are single parents. If we assume that companies will even out productivity in the long run via the means above, then the largest impact will be on net employment. In many parts of the U.S., companies that employ workers at minimum wage levels are perpetually hiring - they cannot fill positions at these wage levels. The impact
Introduction to Economics and Global Capitalism The idea that minimum wage, even though it has risen, has not kept pace with real wages, according to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (2013). The issue of course is one of inflation. So if Sen. Harkin wants to grow the middle class, which he calls the backbone of the economy, he should simply get on the Fed to stop
Zeynep Ton's A minimum wage hike could help employers, too, in the Harvard Business Review. This article is a speculative piece about the effects of proposed minimum wage increases at the federal level. The author takes a look at companies that superior wages and benefits for their industry. The underlying theme is that this is juxtaposed against a common argument that raising the minimum wage will be universally harmful. The
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