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Minimum Wage
"A man must always live by his work, and his wages must at least be sufficient to maintain him. They must even
upon most occasions be somewhat more; otherwise it would be impossible for him to bring up a family, and the
race of such workmen could not last beyond the first generation.(An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the
Wealth of Nations) A person would not be able to live off the minimum wage that is set at $7.25 an hour. The
minimum wage should be sufficient enough to maintain him keyword Him if he has two kids and a wife, is
the minimum wage still sufficient enough to maintain him? With the cost of living increasing 1.7 percent
beginning in December and potentially increasing even more. The minimum wage will not be enough to support
a family, Since the minimum wage was last raised in 2009, the price of apples went up 16%, bacon 67%,
cheddar cheese 21%, coffee 27%, ground beef 39%, and milk 21%(Bill Quigley). Even though some people
say that we should not raise minimum wage, We should raise the minimum wage because it could get
families out of poverty, it would make the living costs more affordable for families in poverty and
minimum wage can lower the crime rates.

Raising the minimum wage can give families who have nothing some hope and faith to help raise their children
for a better life. In the article (Why raise minimum wage?) it states Our study found that at least one-fourth of
Americans work at jobs that pay so little that they cannot sustain themselves and their families without turning
to government programs or going into debt.-Raymond C. Offenheiser is saying people who are getting paid
low wages start looking for the government to help, by doing that we get ourselves in more trouble and in debt.
This can help support the claim because if the government raise the minimum wage people who are in big need
of money wouldn't be in such debt by looking for the government for help when it really just hurts you more.

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The best way to fight poverty is to get people jobs with decent wages that makes sure they get put above the
poverty line. According to economic estimates, raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour will reduce the
poverty rate for non-elderly Americans to 15.8 percent by 2016 from current 17.5 percent levels. This increase
would bring about 6.8 million people out of poverty. The current federal minimum wage is at $7.25, hasnt
changed since 2009. Raising the minimum wage would help families raise their children, i believe that the
government should also help low wage income workers get affordable and quality benefits such as health care
and child care.

Poverty has been a major problem in America, most people in poverty do not work because of the low paying
wage and poor benefits according in the article on Why raise the minimum wage raising the minimum wage
to $10.10 would lift more than 5 million Americans out of poverty and help 14 million children see a boost in
their family income. (Raymond C. Offenheiser) This would help families get out of poverty and help 14
million kids in the process of raising the minimum wage and it would give families and their kids hope to
achieve greater things in life. Giving hope to these kids would probably be the best thing people in poverty can
ask for, just hoping they can make it out the situation they are in. Raising the minimum wage can have a major
impact on our society, more people would get out of poverty and start getting jobs with better benefits that can
help them and their families.

You would not be able to raise a family on 7.25 an hour especially if you're a single parent The average age
of a fast food worker is 29 years old (for women specifically, it's 32), and 36 percent of fast food workers older
than 20 have kids. And the average age of a big-box retail worker is over 30. No one can live on the current
federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour -- a figure that hasn't moved a penny since 2009.(Kurt A.Gardinier)
This shows that no one can live off 7.25 an hour especially when you already have a kid and are an single
parent. With grocery prices increasing each year from 2009-2015, milk has increased 21% while the minimum

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wage has stayed the same, each year it becomes more difficult to live off $7.25.

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Across the phase-in period of the minimum-wage increase, GDP would increase by roughly $25 billion,
resulting in the creation of approximately 100,000 net new jobs over that period.Those who would see wage
increases do not fit some of the stereotypes of minimum-wage workers.Women would be disproportionately
affected, comprising nearly 55 percent of those who would benefit.Nearly 88 percent of workers who would
benefit are at least 20 years old. This supports the claim because if the government decides to raise the
minimum wage then that could create more jobs for parents with low paying jobs and that could potentially
means more families are going to get out of poverty. Raising the minimum wage would help create more jobs
and help most people over 20 years old

Parents with responsibilities spend more time at work for the minimum wage then with their families Foster
makes only $8.25 per hourthe minimum wage in Illinois. That amounts to less than $13,000 per year, well
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below the federal poverty threshold of $19,530 for a family of three. It is barely enough for him to feed himself,
much less his two young daughters, ages 6 and 4. Since he cannot afford a car, Foster spends many unpaid
hours on the bus, commuting to various subway locations across the city, significantly increasing his time away
from home. -Jack Jenkins. Parents cannot spend time with their children because they have to work extra hours
at work to support their family so they sacrifice just to live and sometimes they do not have enough to support
their family so they get a second job to get more money.

Raising the minimum wage can potentially stop crimes such as robbery 89 percent of murders and violent
crimes in Chicago were in low-income areas where mostly black and Latino people live(Annie-Rose Strasser)
this says that the people who are doing all these killings in chicago are the ones with low income or on
minimum wage. This helps supports my claim because people who don't have money feel the need to rob or kill
to live a better life for them and their kids.

Minimum Wage can cause crimes Researchers have found that the majority of increases in violent crime can
be explained by downward wage trends(Annie-Rose Strasser) if the government really cared about people
safety and wants to stop the crimes especially in Chicago and Los Angeles then raising the minimum wage
would help. People who make barely over 7.25 an hour are the ones who feel like they have no other options
but to go rob a store for $500 in the cash register and then when they get caught they get like 10 years in prison
because of the low wages that workers get, they feel like they need to make some extra money rather that means
selling drugs or robbing, because of the low minimum wage that America hasn't raised since 2009.

A study by economists William Even of Miami University and David Macpherson of Trinity University
concludes that in the 21 states where the full 40% wage increase took effect, the consequences of the minimum
wage for black young adults without a diploma were actually worse than the consequences of the Great
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Recession.(Annie-Rose Strasser) This means that the low minimum wage has had a bigger impact than the
great recession had on america back in the late 1920s and all of the 1930s because just raising the minimum
wage could have a big impact on every race and stopping future violent crimes.

I want the minimum wage to be increased to at least $9.00 an hour but in reality minimum wage jobs require
minimal skills, minimum wage has never been meant to become a career, minimum wage jobs are for teenagers
who can work outside of school and for kids who drop out. Why should a kid straight out of high school that
goes straight into the army making $1,547 a month (MyArmyBenefits) be making almost the equivalent to a kid
who dropped out of school making $1,400 a month while the kid in the Army is risking his life daily protecting
this country.

A person who did not do what they were supposed to do in high school is going to make $9.00 an hour is going
to make almost the same as an medical assistant who receives hourly wages of between $11.86 and $16.87 an
hour. Why should a drop out who did not work nearly as hard as an medical assistant that went to college get
nearly the same type of pay as an Medical assistant. Should they quit their career to go work at a Taco Bell or a
McDonalds, minimum wage paying jobs require minimal skills.

Increasing the minimum wage only benefits teenagers. Many Republicans argue that raising the minimum wage
just hurts teenagers ability to gain work experience. But as a new report from the Economic Policy Institute
shows, nearly 90 percent of minimum wage workers are 20 years old or older. Plus, more than a third (35.8
percent) [of minimum wage workers] are married, and over a quarter (28.0 percent) are parents. This means it
would only benefit teenagers which could result in a higher dropout rate.

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Todays minimum of $7.25 an hour is worth 25 percent less than the minimum in the late 1960s. A full-time,
minimum-wage worker earns about $15,000 per year, which is below the federal poverty line for a worker with
just one child. (Should the Federal Minimum Wage Be Raised?) Anyone who's tried to pay a heating bill, or
simply buy groceries knows that the current minimum wage does not support families. When we talk about the
kind of people whose lives will be made better by raising the minimum wage, we are not not talking about a
couple teenagers earning extra spending money to supplement their allowance. We are not talking about
providers and working Americans with bills to pay and mouths to feed. The bottom line is that five million lowincome Americans working full time for minimum wage, deserve a raise. Even though some people say that
we should not raise minimum wage, we should raise the minimum wage because it would get families out
of poverty with the minimum wage increase, it will make the living costs more affordable for families in
poverty and minimum wage can potentially lower crime rates.

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Gardinier, Kurt A. "No One Can Live on $7.25 an Hour." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com. Web.
29 May 2015.
Jenkins, Jack. "Real Family Values: Raising the Federal Minimum Wage." Name. Web. 29 May 2015.
Offenheiser, Raymond C. "Opinion: Why Raise Minimum Wage? - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network.
Web. 29 May 2015.
Smith, Adam. "An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations." Google Books. Web. 29 May
2015.
Strasser, Annie Rose. "How Raising The Minimum Wage Could Reduce Gun Violence In Chicago."
ThinkProgress RSS. 22 Feb. 2013. Web. 29 May 2015.

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