I just took a poll about raising minimum wage. 19% voted against it, why would anyone vote against it?

Answer 1

I live in Oregon where the minimun wage just went to $7.50 an hour,as a result, the bussiness I work for raised their prices, when I was able to I put all the Employees that were doing a good job for a raise above minimun wage, why should an employer pay the same for and inept employee, than for a good employee, I realize there are employers that do not give raises to any of their Employees but they raise their prices anyway making it harder for the good workers, and why would a good worker stay with a cheap boss that expects even more work from you? as a manager I was payed above minimum wage, but I never got a raise, even though I had work hard enough to work my way up from entry level, minimum wage to management, as far as I can see minimum wage increases simple hurt more people that it helps, and that is probably why others voted against it in you poll.

Answer 2

A minimum wage initiative:
1) Helps only those workers making minimum wage (and afterwards, they're still only making minimum wage).

2) Disproportionately impacts those businesses that actually pay minimum wage (generally small, family-owned shops and restaurants; most corporate environments pay better than minimum wage already; that's right - the kid behind the counter at McDonald's won't be helped).

3) Is projected to increase unemployment among the poorest - unskilled persons with a high school education. An extra quarter an hour doesn't sound like much, but in states with a $5.75 minimum wage, that's a 4.3% hike, and makes a 35-hour-a-week worker earn an additional $40 a month. If you have 20 shift workers, you'd see your wage expense rise by an extra 'person' without any additional productivity (how much harder are you going to work for that quarter an hour?), and probably cut a worker as a result, or trim everyone's hours.

4) Won't help illegal workers - who are probably the most vulnerable - since they don't get paid the minimum wage anyway.

5) Still does nothing to address a lack of health care and other benefits.



A lot of these problems would go away if 16-year-olds:
1) Stayed in school and earned their diplomas.
2) Abstained from sexual intercourse (and prevented out-of-wedlock births, which is the leading cause of poverty among persons under the age of 25).
3) Learned to save and budget at an early age.

and

4) If funding for higher education was expanded.

Answer 3

Some people realize that there are workers who don't work much--as in they are not worth much. If it cost more to pay those people that it almost doesn't pay to keep around already, then they will soon be unemployed.

While I'm no fan of timeclocks, some people seem to be gone more than they are present, employers can't depend on them. Some workers can only seem to work if a boss is standing around bossing them, which ties up a boss' time instead of doing other things that are more valuable for the business. Some workers can't seem to get the hang of things and have to be taught over and over again all the steps of their work. Some people are constantly indifferent or rude or even mean to customers, coworkers, and suppliers--how dare those people disturb me--and that drives away business. The country has many opportunities to succeed by inguity, hard work, advantageous action when luck brings a chance. The country has plenty, too, who also simply are prone to failure.

Sure, the minimum wage protects workers from stingy bosses. But sometimes stingy bosses are stingy because the workers don't bring much value to the business. If these problem people now are going to cost more to keep around, then fewer of them will be kept. That means more will be unemployed. That means that some people would be opposed to a raise in minimum wage for the sake of those least able to stay employed.

Answer 4

... It makes everything more expensive. The first thing businesses do is jack up prices for everything. It's the consumer that takes the hit.

... Bosses will start firing employees more and find the cheapest ones they can get.

... Bosses will hold off new hirings.

... Bosses will apooint and give more responsibilities to current workers. Current workers will have to work a lot harder.

... Bosses will start lowering the wages of the upper staff (managers, shift leaders, assistant managers, supervisors).

... Mom/Pop stores that already make small profit margins will start going out of business.

... Business owners will delay business expansions, such as opening up new shops. This will cause a slow down in the enomomy -- which will result less jobs available.

... More and more companies will outsource, using cheap labor from places uch as India and China. I don't blame these companies.

It's unfortunate the Republicans are having to succumb to the minimum wage increase -- they would get slaughtered at the polls if they didn't.

The US is getting taken over by Socialists/Communists. In 10-20 years, it will be scary because the far left is going to turn the US into the USSR.

Answer 5

Raising the minimum wage, and minimum wages in general are foolish. You have to examine it in real terms, money is simply representative of product, for example, if an economy has 100 dollars and 100 carrots, then each carrot will sell for a dollar, now if you print 1 million dollars there is still only 100 carrots, so regardless of dollars the product, the real value of the economy is unchanged. so yes could could raise miniimum wage to 1 000 000 dollars an hour but that will not increase our production, there will still be the same goods with simply greater dollars chasing them. And the only practical result of this would be that those employers who can not afford the increase will either lay off employees, hire less employees, or demand more labor from the employees they have. So asking to raise the minimum wage, makes little sense, why stop at a 5% increase, why this arbitrary number, why not 10 000 %, What is important is an increase in production not wages, with more carrots say 200 and still 100 dollars, carrots fall in price they are now 50 cents each, our wage rose, though our money did not, money is simply representative of the product within the economy, the thinking that people can be manipulated into believing that they are better off with more money is foolish. If that were the case then why not give everyone a billion dollars, or reward counterfeiting, and inflation. This ruse was designed by Keynes and is just a method to fool people into believing that they are better off, inevitably the prices will rise to reflect the increase in production costs. I know it sounds great higher pay wow, but don't be fooled, for us to truly make more, more must be produced for us to consume it. In fact due to governmental salaries, printing costs distribution costs, and a companies costs due to adjustment to the increase, actually wastes our productive efforts hence slightly reducing output, making only 99 carrots.

Answer 6

All that raising minimum wage does is hurt small business owners who barely make enough profit to pay themselves a decent wage. That's where your 19% is coming from. It has absolutely nothing to do with inflation. Inflation occurs when there is too much money circulating in the economy, and raising minimum wage will not set that off. It is also unlikely that there will be any price increases. To cause that, the raise would have to effect large chain operations as well as small businesses, and the big outfits are paying above minimum wage now.

Answer 7

Who would vote against higher minimum wages? Those who would have to pay the increased wages. Those whose businesses hire mnimum wage workers.

Restaurants, for example, do not want to pay higher wages. Smaller restaurants have a hard time keeping afloat in the first place. They depend on low wage earners for labor: dishwashers, servers, etc. They figure that the servers make up for the lower wages by earning tips.

Some small business owners will not be able to make any money if they have to pay higher wages.

Other companies that can afford to pay higher wages--chain restaurants, for examples--still don't want to pay more.

It's a shame because everyone needs a living wage to survive. Minimum wage earners usually have to take on more than one job or depend on another family member to earn money. Businesses feel that the skills needed for these jobs are unspecialized--need no education or training--so they are worth less.

They aren't being smart. The low wages force the better workers to find better paying jobs. Then business owners complain about not being able to keep good workers.

A good worker should be aptly compensated.

Answer 8

I think the minimum wage being raised is just used as an excuse to do what " those people" mentioned above have been waiting to do.......did that make sense?? I know a lot of people who work their butts off - long, hard hours, some even two jobs, so they can feed and clothe their families. It is not fair to pay them less than the price of a lunch per hour!

Answer 9

to start with I'm a manager for a fast food restaurant. with the latest increase in the minimum wage in Wisconsin we had to increase our menu price by 4.5% to offset the wage increases. some people may say we just need to open up the purse strings and pay the money but like in any business, every dollar is important. this increase in price directly effects all people not just those making minimum wage. it takes more money from those people and gives it back to my employees in the form of a wage increase. so by this reasoning minimum wage increases are a good thing. unfortunately history has shown that the increase in minimum wage increases inflation and increases the number of people whose income falls below the poverty level. the problem is...the theory is great but it doesn't work.

Answer 10

An arbitrary minimum wage increases the amount of money that companies must spend on labor, which increases the amount of money that companies must charge for their products, which increases the amount of money that people must pay to buy the products. This causes inflation, which reduces the buying power of consumers. People who make minimum wage are most affected by having less buying power, and so can actually be worse off with a minimum wage.

Let's illustrate this with an example. Let's say the minimum wage were $10 per hour and a person works 40 hours per week. Before taxes, that person would make $400 per week, or about $1600 per month. Let's say that person's rent, public transportation, food, clothing, etc. cost $1200 per month. Let's further say that the person pays $300 per month in taxes. $1600 per month in wages - $1200 per month in expenses - $300 in taxes equals $100. This $100 is left over (savings, having fun, whatever). Now, let's say that the minimum wage goes up to $11 per hour. That would mean that the person would make $440 per week or about $1760 per month. That would mean that the person would have $260 left at the end of the month ($1760 - $1200 - $300 = $260), right? Wrong. This is because the total effect of raising the minimum wage by $1 per hour on the economy would be to increase the cost of food, rent, clothing, etc. because the cost of labor costs more and companies have to pass that cost on. So, now let's say the price of clothing, food, transportation, etc. goes from $1200 per month to $1400 per month. The amount the person would have left over would now be $60 ($1760 - $1400 - $300 = $60) instead of $100. So, even though that person is making more money, it costs him more to buy the things he could have bought before while making less money.

This does not just apply to the cost of labor, by the way. The increase in gas prices in the last couple of years has had the same effect. The cost of fuel increasing forces companies to have to charge consumers more money and the prices of most things go up. Those who are hurt the worst are those who make the least amount of money. I hope all this makes sense.

May God bless and keep you.