There is some talk here in BC about people wanting to increase the minimum wage to about $10/hr. For awhile now, it has been $8/hr. I suppose it is pretty much the same everywhere on how increasing the minimum wage is suppose to make things better for everyone. In general, the logic is supposed to be how you are getting a better income base to accommodate a normal lifestyle due to the increase cost of living.
This is one of those topics that I would have immediately said “great†when I was a teenager, but the more I think about it the more I feel that it doesn’t really do what people think it does. In some ways, it can be more harmful. From my personal experience, most people who are working for minimum wage are say teenagers who are working for the first time. Generally for most, as a teenager you have no real expenses.
If you are an adult who is say educated or obtain some kind of decent skill and experience, I don’t see why you would be earning anywhere near minimum wage anyhow. From a business point of view, this makes it harder to be able to afford hiring people for positions where younger people with no experience would love to do. I can even imagine say those summer fair jobs that a lot of people do will be axed as a result of the organization not having the budget to hire as many people with a wage hike.
While this would be more controversial, some say there shouldn’t be a minimum wage at all. Reason that I hear from most is that many times people want to work somewhere for experience without pay, but the employer or organization can’t do so as they need to follow rules. That is going a little too overboard I’d say though as we need some kind base to prevent too much abuse.
Overall though, I would see a minimum wage hike benefiting more to the people that don’t really need it in the first place as oppose to helping the majority of working adults that have a lot of bills to pay if the goal was to help people in terms of the cost of living here.