...far between, and it’s very hard to find a single job that can pay well enough to support a family. This issue has been a hot topic for political debate for years now, and lately the argument has grown bigger and parties are looking for solutions for this. A raise in the minimum wage is a suggestion that many of the liberals in Congress have brought to the table to help out these people working for minimal pay. While this sounds great from the outside, the core of the idea must be examined to reveal the fatal flaws in the plan. The minimum wage in the United States should not be raised. In every field of business in the American industry, prices fluctuate based on many factors, employee wages being one of the major ones. Specifically speaking in terms of the food industry, wages of employees make up a huge fraction into the price of the food. If the minimum wage goes up to one of the amounts currently being discussed of fifteen dollars an hour, all of the current prices of food will increase by a very similar margin. When restaurants are forced to pay a higher minimum wage, they must repair that deficit by raising the price of products to continue to raise money. So the argument of raising the minimum wage to create more cash flow in the current market is practically invalid. Even though the income of the workers is increasing, the price of living will also increase with it, leaving the workers exactly where they were to begin with. Imagine a McDonald’s worker with a wife and two...
Words: 712 - Pages: 3
...Wage and Wage Earners Research Process Paper University of Phoenix Research and Evaluation I RES/341 Negussie Nega Purpose of the Research The way this information is layer out it will show us different wages for males, females, education in years, Occupation, Industry, married, not married, white, non-white, Hispanic, age groups, union, non-union, age. By the end of this research we will be able to tell from the group surveyed who is making more and if education matters. This basic research can help figure out if these differences make a difference in prevailing wage earners. Is it possible to figure out whether making a change now help the outcome of this research? According to our text observation and preliminary data gathering is already preformed for us. This leads us to problem definition therefore from our research it is believed that one should find out if education is an important aspect in earning the prevailing wage. Secondary problems would also be looked into is does gender play a part in defining prevailing wage. If one can learn about the fundamentals on wage earning than it would be a possibility to change the way our own wage leads to the success in our own lines of work. Doing this type of research can lead all interested parties a chance to learn what to do to make a change in their future and the future of all of these types of survey’s .According to our text a problem does not necessarily mean that something is seriously wrong, it could simply...
Words: 318 - Pages: 2
...Minimum wage bill defeated in Parliament Introduction: The demand to raise New Zealand’s minimum wage has decline. We live in a society where government has to make balance between employers and employees. Workers want better paying job and at the same time employers want to control labour cost. Therefor government put the floor of minimum wage “a minimum wage is the lowest wage that each employee can legally get from an employer” (exclusive papers). This is the lowest amount that a worker can sell his/her labour and that is what we need for better economy right now especially not a price ceiling which is "a set below the market price, then a "shortage" is created; the quantity demanded will exceed the quantity supplied"(week 3w/s).However increasing the minimum wage dose have many consequences on society, people will have better standard of living and encouraging more people to work but at the same time it will affect the employers in increase on their production costs. Therefore the employers has to cut down the staff and it could be hard to find a job for unskilled workers, youth or adults could also face problems in finding the job, which may result as increase in unemployment. Body: Economist needs assumptions to simplify the reality and models to apply (lecture1).As we take simple demand and supply frame work if the price of a commodity goes up, the demand of it goes down (week3) it is the same in case of labour market if government increases minimum wage (price)...
Words: 1067 - Pages: 5
...Olivia Thomas Economics 7/1/2016 Wage Determination in Professional Sports We work day in and day out for the same dollar every day. Shouldn’t the wages change when the economy changes? The question maybe what is wage determination? The answer is the listing of wage rates and fringe benefit rates for each classification of laborers and mechanics which the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor had determined to be prevailing in a given area for a particular type of construction. To further understand how wage determination works we have to know how it’s rated. A classical economists argue that wages—the price of labor—are determined (like all prices) by supply and demand. They call this the market theory of wage determination. When workers sell their labor, the price they can charge is influenced by several factors on the supply side and several factors on the demand side. The wages rate shouldn’t be a set price or amount. Whatever the current economic status is should determine how the rate of wages should be. Most wages and rates are based on earnings. Your weekly or bi-weekly earnings set the rate of wages. Earnings are equal to wage rate multiplied by number of hours worked, so an employee learns that the minimum wage of $7.25 and the typical work week of 40 hours will equal to $290 per week and only $15,080 a year. Wages differ from nations, regions, occupations, and individuals. Generally wages will be higher where the demand for...
Words: 1043 - Pages: 5
...Although the terms “minimum wage” and “living wage” are used interchangeably, there is a significant difference between these two. Minimum wage is usually determined by the government, while a living wage is the amount required to live a safe and decent life with access to basic amenities including education, recreation and saving for retirement. There are many possibilities that minimum wage falls below the living wage for its failure to fulfill the basic needs. Therefore, a living wage is a far more realistic yardstick of minimum income than the minimum wage. Although living wage is a better and realistic than minimum wage, it is difficult to have auniform minimum wage reflecting the living wage accurately. Living wage varies from state...
Words: 318 - Pages: 2
...How ‘fair’ are wage practices along the supply chain? Global assessment in 2010-111 Daniel Vaughan-Whitehead 2 SUMMARY Worrying global wage trends around the world as well as poor wage practices along the supply chain – both exacerbated by the economic crisis – have led to increasing concerns over wage issues. This paper is aimed at identifying how ‘fair’ would be wage practices along the supply chain. For this we first propose to define ‘Fair wages’ through a new approach, the ‘Fair wage approach’, aimed at providing CSR actors with a coherent set of fair wage dimensions and indicators. This new approach is then applied in a large-scale exercise carried out on wages in more than 100 suppliers in Asia and complemented by three case studies in China. This exercise carried out in 2010-11 provides first hand and most recent information on wage practices among suppliers. The results identify a number of wage problems along the supply chain, and also confirm the need to address wage issues using a broad spectrum of different ‘fair wage’ dimensions, including living wages, minimum wages, prevailing wages, social dialogue, the payment of working hours and the evolution of wages in accordance with prices, enterprise performance and changes in technology and human capital. Paper prepared for the Better Work conference, 26-28 October 2011, Washington DC. Data have been collected through the 2010 auditing process of the Fair Labor Association (FLA). I would like to thank Kenan Ercel, Patrick...
Words: 14477 - Pages: 58
...MINIMUM WAGES ACT, 1948 Background A tripartite Committee Viz., "The Committee on Fair Wage" was set up in 1948 to provide guidelines for wage structures in the country. The report of this Committee was a major landmark in the history of formulation of wage policy in India. Its recommendations set out the key concepts of the 'living wage', "minimum wages" and "fair wage" besides setting out guidelines for wage fixation. Article 39 states that the State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards securing (a) that the citizen, men and women equally shall have the right to an adequate livelihood and (b) that there is equal pay for equal work for both men and women. Article 43 states that the State shall endeavour, by suitable legislation or economic organization or in any other way, to give all workers, agricultural, industrial or otherwise, work, a living wage, conditions of work ensuring a decent standard of life and full enjoyment of leisure, and social and cultural opportunities. Enactment of the Minimum Wages Act Historical Backdrop * The initiative started with the resolution placed by one Shri. K. G. R. Choudhary in 1920 for setting up Boards for determination of minimum wages in each industry. * The International Labour Conference adopted in 1928 Convention No.26 and Recommendation No. 30 relating to wage fixing machinery in trades or parts of trades. * On the recommendation of the Standing Labour Committee and Indian Labour Conference, a Labour Investigation Committee...
Words: 2630 - Pages: 11
...Minimum wage legislation has been a topic of discussion for many years among economists. The first laws were introduced in Australia and New Zealand in order to protect minimum standard living for unskilled workers. At this point more than 90% of all countries have some kind of minimum wage legislation. However there are countries that do not set the minimum wage among those are: Germany, Finland, Iceland, Italy and other counties. Germany is the largest national economy in Europe. According to Central Intelligence Agency GDP of the country in 2011 is $2.94 trillion with real growth rate of 3.5%. Based on Trade Economic data unemployment rate of Germany in October 2011 was 6.5%. Despite the fact the Germany does not have a set minimum wage the average wages in western Germany is 27.9 euro per hour and 17.4 euro per our in Eastern German (source http://export.gov/germany based on data from 03/2011). The wages there are higher than average wages in European Union or worldwide. Of course there are laws of the German Government that regulate dismissal of workers/maternity leave/ vacation/health benefits; but not minimal wages. Minimum wage is set by the Government in order to protect unskilled workers. It provides employees with guaranteed minimum amount of income from their work to survive and pay their bills. It protects mostly adults from loosing their jobs to teenagers or foreigners that are ready to work for less than a minimum wage. However there are...
Words: 935 - Pages: 4
...Minimum wage In our country so many people live in poverty. Even if they are working hard and doing everything right. Except the government who has been spending so much money on foreign soil that we have none left to spend on ourselves. Minimum wage is not as high as it should be with all of these outrageous prices and spikes in gas and food. It should at least be bumped up to eight dollars an hour starting out or maybe more. In these times of need we need companies to start appreciating there help instead of working them to death with little to show for it. I understand that our country is in crises with the economy being so bad. I also understand that we should help other countries if we can because we may need help in the future and making allies is a big deal. And, on a cynical level, I suspect that the government may know more about this kind of stuff than we do. Nevertheless, the government’s solution to cut pay or lay off hardworking people is unfair to our country and to the everyday, hardworking people of our country. Knowing how it feels to be a hardworking American I support the raise in minimum wage. Having two children and a husband who is not working being a single working household, I know how hard it is trying to live on minimum wage. I probably have the least amount of bills a person can have but we still struggle every day. The government’s decision not to raise the minimum wage already is turning people against everything it stands for...
Words: 454 - Pages: 2
...Raising the Minimum Wage Over the years the minimum wage has been a talked about topic. Many people would see it as a great idea because it would help families financially. In reality raising the minimum wage would be more of a struggle rather than a gift. The minimum wage has always been a struggle for people. Many people think that raising the minimum wage will solve all of our problems, when in reality it will not. It would only reduce the human motivation. Raising the minimum wage would also eliminate jobs making the economy struggle more. There would not be enough money circulating through the economy. Raising the minimum wage would reduce human motivation, eliminate jobs, raise taxes, and make the economy go into a hyperinflation. Raising minimum wage will reduce human motivation. In a perfect world where everyone comes from a good home, and lives in society, where people are raised to strive for better. In today’s society we do not have the perfect world. We have children being raised up to where they have to find a job at a young age just to help support their family. Children being raised up in a home like this creates a loss of ambition. Imagine, only being a child getting a job at such a young age. The only thing on your mind is being able to support the family with the money that is coming in. Imagine fighting to get the education back that was lost. Imagine not being able to go to school because there is no more time or money to help out yourself. Then the...
Words: 1676 - Pages: 7
...John Ola, How Rising Wages Are Changing The Game. HR590 Labor cost as competitive advantage Referenceforlabor.com states “Many firms strive for a competitive advantage, but few truly understand what it is or how to achieve and keep it. A competitive advantage can be gained by offering the consumer a greater value than the competitors, such as by offering lower prices or providing quality services or other benefits that justify a higher price. The strongest competitive advantage is a strategy that that cannot be imitated by other companies”. One of these sources of completive advantage for a company or country is Labor cost. Hiring and training better people than the competitor can become an immeasurable competitive advantage for a company. A company's employees are often overlooked, but should be given careful consideration. This human resource-based advantage is difficult for a competitor to imitate because the source of the advantage may not be very apparent to an outsider. If the company can achieve this and still keep its cost down, it will have a competitive advantage over its rival. Citing the China price, Publisher weekly states, “Dreaded by competitors, the China price has become the lowest price possible, the hallmark of China's incredibly cheap, ubiquitous manufacturers”. UC Berkeley in its study, Living Wage Policy and Wal-Mart states, and another important question to address is how a $10 per hour minimum wage would impact consumer prices charged by Wal-Mart...
Words: 1452 - Pages: 6
...indefinitely on a job that pays $7.25 an hour? That is the national minimum wage set by the Fair Labor Standards Act in 2009. Projecting this to a 40-hour work week over 50 weeks it comes to a total of $14,500 a year. This is just above the U.S poverty level for a family of 2, but below the poverty level of $22,050 for a family of 4. Despite the fact that the minimum wage has been increased 3 times since 2007, it is almost $3.00 below what it was nearly forty years ago in purchasing power. It has not kept up with inflation. If it had, the minimum wage would be $10.74 per hour. In other words, the minimum wage is a far cry from being a living wage which is a wage that is high enough for fulltime workers to provide a decent life for themselves and their families. For the benefit of American citizens and the economy, the minimum wage must be increased! Those opposed to an increase in the minimum wage focus on a number of assumptions suggesting it would be a bad idea. Under close examination, all of their arguments fall apart. One of the main arguments for not raising the minimum wage is that it is a job killer. The reasoning is the increase in salary decreases profits and results in cutbacks in hiring. However, a study at the University of California, Berkeley, has shown that raising the minimum wage does not have a negative effect on employment. An analysis of those states that independently increased the minimum wage “had job growth slightly above the national average.” Another study...
Words: 1051 - Pages: 5
...The Business of the Minimum Wage • Quantity demanded of employees decreases when quantity supplied of potential employees increases, as minimum wage increases from $7.25 to $10.10. • The green dot shows original equilibrium, when minimum wage was at $7.25. Raising Minimum Wage: WHO GAINS •Government receives higher income tax due to increase in wages. •Low income families are likely to receive more positive impact from new increase wages. WHO LOSES •Potential workers may face potentially unemployment since now employers may not hire as many employees due to increased wage expenses. •Consumers ends up paying a high price for goods and services. •Job market will shrink due to employers reacting to increased wage expenses. DIFFERENCE •Inflation rate will increase. IN IMPACT ASSESSMENT •Pros: To stimulate employers competition and to reduce lower labor turnover •Cons: The positive impacts of a new minimum wage is short-lived since costs and prices will react to this change. Wage => Cost => End Price IS RAISING MINIMUM WAGE A GOOD IDEA? No, because the consequences outweigh the benefits. At first glance, the benefits are positive, but are in fact superficial. In the long-run, the positive impacts are minimal. Bibliography • Romer, C.D., March 2, 2013. The Business of the Minimum Wage. The New York Times, Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/03/business/theminimum-wage-employment-and-incomedistribution.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 • “Los...
Words: 259 - Pages: 2
...In my opinion, the minimum wage is designed to be just enough for an average family in the Philippines. With average family, I mean a family consisting of 2 parents, and maybe 2 to 3 children. Statistically, despite the population growth and the increase number of the people living in the lower classes, a family can still sustain its needs if each of the family members is earning the minimum wage. However, many factors should also be considered, like the number of jobs available and the state of the person whether he/she is just a child or incapable of working. In reality, regular families in the Philippines don’t really consist of strong educated man and women; they are merely regular people, who are mostly composed of children. Unless the government accepts this reality, no permanent solution can be made. Despite the problems faced by the country, there are still 2 solutions I have thought of to lessen the suffering of each Filipino family. First, the government could give a list or a guide to people on how they can spend their minimum wage salaries to sustain and support their families. For example: 2 cans of sardines/5 eggs in the morning, 1 kg of chicken for lunch and dinner, and the excess, keep it for emergencies and other expenses. With this, families could be wiser and smarter in managing their budgets. It could also give the people ideas to create their own sets of list to find possible alternatives depending on their situations. Second, there should be a fixed computation...
Words: 350 - Pages: 2
...Prevailing Wages Introduction The U.S. Congress passed the Davis-Bacon Act in 1931 during the Great Depression. According to this act, a law was implemented that required governmental contractors to pay ‘prevailing wages’ on projects that it took on behalf of the federal government. The effect of this legislation was that more than 40 states adopted the ‘little Davis-Bacon Acts’ or ‘prevailing wage’ laws. This was then, but later on, many states repealed these statutes. Still, many states today, including Michigan, carry on with such laws that seem to have become obsolete from those Depression-days (Vedder 1997). This paper shall attempt to take a closer look as to what the implications of implementing such laws are, with scrutiny of these laws as enacted in the state of Michigan. Various statistics shall be presented to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of using such laws in a state. The paper shall discuss the various issues that Michigan has faced in regards to these laws and will come up with some solutions and recommendations for the state of Michigan on whether it should continue to implement these rules or repeal from them. Many jurisdictions, including that of the federal government, set the prevailing wages exactly at or very near to those that are demanded by the laborers according to the union-scale. “Prevailing wage laws, then, force contractors on government construction or other projects to pay their employees at the same rate as unionized members of...
Words: 3688 - Pages: 15
