Tan 1

Kevin Tan
Ms. Boyd
ENG 111
08 November 2014
Minimum Wage for Minimum Work
Lately there has been a lot of controversy about raising the minimum wage from $7.25
an hour to around $15 an hour. According to the Department of Labor (DOL) 47% of minimum
wage employees are in the food service industry. This job as described on the DOL website
requires no education, no experience, and barely any training. Surprisingly around half of these
workers are over the age of 24 (Minimum Wage Workers). They are arguing that people
cannot live on the current minimum wage and are fighting for the number to be increased.
While most politicians believe that raising minimum wage could lead to massive job cuts and a
rise in unemployment. Now, a Private First Class Solider with about 4 years experience in the
United States Army makes roughly $24,500 a year (Army Base Pay). That comes out to about
$12 an hour rounded up. Putting this into consideration, should someone flipping burgers and
filling sodas earn more than one who is out protecting our countrys freedom? Should unskilled
workers be rewarded the same pay or higher than workers with an education and years of
experience? Minimum wage should not be increased to $15 an hour because it creates an
outlet for unskilled workers and could potentially lead to job cuts and a rise in
unemployment.
Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour could potentially lead to more job cuts as
opposed to creating them. In order to compensate for the higher pay of workers, companies
would have to hire less workers to stay profitable. Companies would begin to screen their new

Tan 2

applicants more thoroughly eliminating the chances for new people in the workforce to gain
jobs that could teach them skills to move up in the workforce. Higher skilled workers would
also consider applying for these lower end jobs, creating an unnecessary competition for
unskilled and newer workers. Of course companies would rather hire someone who was fully
capable with experience and training over someone who was new or unskilled for the same
pay. Raising the minimum wage does not increase the value of the worker's labor. It increases
the cost of the worker's labor. And as everyone knows, the more something costs, the less of it
we buy. This is as true of workers in the labor market as it is of anything else (Davies and
Harrigan). Minimum wage jobs were created to help new employees learn different skills by
training them to be adequate at a specific work area. Raising the minimum wage would
completely defeat the purpose of creating these lower end jobs. Hiring one qualified person
with the experience and training to cover multiple workstations outweighs hiring two
employees to cover one station each. Raising minimum wage would disrupt the job market for
unskilled and new workers, who these jobs were created for in the first place, the students and
young adults. This raise to $15 an hour could possibly have the wrong effects towards our new
generation of teenagers and young adults.
An entry level job that requires no education, no experience, and barely any training
that pays $15 an hour! That is a dream come true for any young adult. Earning these wages as
a temporary job during the summertime for money to spend; could easily convert a young adult
into having a full time job schedule. Even more importantly potentially persuading them to
drop out of school. Raising the minimum wage could possibly increase the dropout rate,
enticing students towards a pay that most had to earn over years on the job or even obtain a

Tan 3

degree or certificate. These jobs were not made to create an outlet for the unskilled or even
worse the lazy, but by increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour this is what is being done.
Creating an easy way out for the ones that are too lazy to pursue a higher education. Why
finish school to earn a degree or diploma when the minimum pay is already close to the same
pay as a job that requires higher credentials? If people who are earning minimum wage claim
that they cannot support themselves or their families they should be striving to find a way to do
so. They should not be sitting around complaining and waiting for a handout. This also serves
as a defensive mechanism to keep our kids in schools when they realize that bail outs are not
always the way to go. That they must take the route of learning and earning your spot in
todays working economy. In a study done by the Pew Research Center they state that about
50% of minimum wage workers are over the age of 24 years old. Half of these workers are
grown adults working at jobs designed and suited for teenagers.
Minimum wage jobs were created as an entry level position for the new unskilled
workers, ideally teenagers, who are looking for a way to earn some spending cash. In Lowell
Kalapas Article: Minimum Wage Should Not Be Living Wage he states just that the minimum
wage was never meant to be a living wage. It was always meant to be an entry level pay
rate. Minimum wage jobs were not created as a job to sustain your family of four or more
afloat. It was never intended to keep Americans above the poverty line. These jobs were
created to teach young unskilled workers the techniques and skills to better themselves when
they reach the next level of the workforce. By increasing minimum wage we risk potentially
losing these entry level positions that help train our newer generation with the proficiency and
abilities they require to move into a higher level working environment. Although raising the

Tan 4

minimum wage to 15 dollars an hour could be a disastrous mistake. That does not mean that it
should not be raised at all.
In the 2014 State of the Union address, President Obama called on Congress to raise
the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour (Whitehouse.gov). Workers fighting to raise
minimum wage may argue that a raise is beyond due. Since the last raise in 2009, where
minimum wage was increased 70 cents from $6.55 to $7.25. There has been an inflation
increase of about 10%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Making the argument to
raise minimum wage to match inflation indeed valid. Although this match would be
approximately 72 cents making the raise in President Obamas call to raise minimum wage to
$10.10 and not the requested $15 an hour more than sufficient. By raising the minimum wage
slightly there could be a spark in lowering unemployment as they see the rise in wages.
Of course higher pay brings more applicants that are interested in higher paying jobs
causing the decline of unemployment; but instead of increasing the minimum wage to $15 an
hour these jobs should offer tax credited programs that encourage their employees to further
their education. This would at least help most minimum wage employees to make the jump
towards the next level. Certainly these minimum wage employees dont expect to work in the
fast food service industry their entire lives. If they were determined to support their families
on these jobs how could they turn down an opportunity to better themselves with an education
and potentially a higher position?
Even though there are many positive and negative aspects of raising minimum wage.
The fact still stands that minimum wage jobs were not created as a job to raise a family upon.

Tan 5

They are jobs to teach unskilled and young workers the skills necessary to join the workforce.
These are minimal effort jobs that require no training and no experience so they also dont
require supplemental pay. Minimum wage should not be increased to $15 an hour because it
creates an outlet for unskilled workers and could potentially lead to job cuts and a rise in
unemployment.

Tan 6
Works Cited
"Minimum Wage Workers Account for 4.7 Percent of Hourly Paid Workers in 2012 : The Economics Daily
: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2013/ted_20130325.htm>.
"Army Base Pay and Basic Pay Chart." Goarmy.com. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.goarmy.com/benefits/money/basic-pay-active-duty-soldiers.html>.
Davies, Antony, and James Harrigan. "Raising the Minimum Wage Is No Free Lunch." US News. U.S.News
& World Report, 12 Oct. 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/economic-intelligence/2013/10/21/raising-theminimum-wage-kills-jobs-for-low-skill-workers>.
Desilver, Drew. "Who Makes Minimum Wage?" Pew Research Center RSS. 8 Sept. 2014. Web. 10 Nov.
2014. <http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/09/08/who-makes-minimum-wage/>.
Kalapa, Lowell. "Minimum Wage Should Not Be Living Wage - Civil Beat." Civil Beat Minimum Wage
Should Not Be Living Wage Comments. 17 May 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.civilbeat.com/2013/05/19095-minimum-wage-should-not-be-living-wage/>.
"Raise the Wage." The White House. The White House. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.whitehouse.gov/raise-the-wage>.