Question for those who want to raise the minimum wage?

Question

Instead of raising the minimum wage, why don't we first make it a law that everyone must be given a job? After all, an increased minimum wage only helps those who already have a job, why not help those who really need it and require that everyone be given a job?
If the government is able to say how much a company pays its employees, it should be able to say how many it pays.

Answer 1

Interesting idea you have there. I've never thought of that. I agree though, since increasing minimum wage will only increase inflation (as if the cost of living isn't high enough as it is). I'm all for better living for those working in places like the fast food industry (some of them are hardest working people alive, especially if they have kids), but it would set off a chain reaction. Your idea, however, would also eliminate the homeless problem, but overcrowd prisons.

Just to wrap up that last part, it's obvious most homeless people would not like to spend time in prison compared to living on the streets: free heat, shelter and food, and all they have to do is hang out with murderers, drug dealers, gang members (organized and otherwise)...wait, what's so bad about that again? Former homeless people learning tricks of the criminal trade so when they get out and make more money than working for minimum wage...I can see how that can turn out to be a problem since you'd be creating more criminals. In essence, we're stuck in a rut.

Answer 2

I'm retired military and my monthly pension (tax free) is equal to 4 times what the maximum would be on the minimum wage. The minimum wage isn't high enough at it's maximum $7.25 to be able to support a family of even 1 person.

The minimum wage should not be less than $14 an hour in my opinion. A person making $14 per hour with no debts. Can't even qualify to buy a house in my state because they don't make enough money to afford any home unless they put half the purchase price down as a down payment.

If this country had 100% employment we'd have runaway inflation and would see massive layoff's. We have to have job availability some level of unemployment for whatever reason. Atleast this is what i've heard from many economist type college professors.

Answer 3

It is not basic math at all, every business is different. A struggling, low profit business may not be able to afford an increase, but there are plenty out there that sure can-- look at most of the major chains, whether food or services or department stores. They make money by hiring less than full time people (39 hours, for example) and don't provide benefits and decent wages. Now if they paid well, the employees might actually care about their jobs. But most don't since if they get laid off they can get another job at the same pay across the street.

Answer 4

that's really approaching communism... i think the government could do more to connect people with employment, but it cannot require a company to employ more people. It can say "if you are going to employ people, you have to pay them at least this much per hour so they can afford to live" but you can't just tell someone to hire more people than it needs. That would be foolish... you'd have a bunch of people standing around doing nothing. If you look at the chronically unemployed, you'd see that there isn't a lot you can do with them anyways, so what's the point? Society ends up paying either way. Maybe the government could open up an Office of Rejects, and businesses that have mindless junk that needs to get done could contract with them... they could have rows of couches with welfare moms licking envelopes and crackheads rolling cigarettes. How about that? And if you're a skilled worker whose skill is no longer needed, they can send you to a country like Japan that still needs you, and you can take classes in the meantime to learn something useful. But for all the things people want government to do, they don't want to pay the bill in the form of higher taxes. So it's really all shifting and shafting and shuffling... I work at a state budget office, and it is my professional opinion that it hardly matters what government does... you will always have winners and losers, and it's a zero-sum game. All the fighting is just over who gets shafted and who doesn't.

Answer 5

We can't make our government give people jobs, nor do we want our government to make employers hire people. That would greatly endanger the freedom we all want and many have fought and died to keep. Minimum wage laws are to protect us from the unbelievable poverty level wages countries like China have. Minimum wage jobs are supposed to be entry level jobs, for those entering the job market. Minimum wage never was intended to be something to raise a family on. Many minimum wage jobs are with employers with good programs to train and develop employees into higher wage level positions. You really only stay at minimum wage level very long if you stagnate and languish there. Everyone who desires greater wages and benefits must work to improve themselves and their job skills, and therefore their worth in the workplace. No one should just have it handed to them, it all should be earned. Strange as it is, there are many, many people out there who have no job, and want no job. Many homeless folks want to remain that way, with no job, for various reasons of their own. this country, and our freedoms here, allow people to choose that life if they wish. also, all over this great country we live in there are people and programs to help people get out of that situation if they want to and are willing to work for it. People generally don't appreciate that which is just handed to them, and they generally don't have it long. On the other hand people tend to work to keep that which they worked to get. Their self - esteem and self - worth is greater as well. There's the long answer.

Answer 6

The government ought to butt out of it all together. If a person is willing to work for chump change, then let them work for chump change. I wouldn't, but I'm sure there are people out there who would. I could care less if laborers (illegals) work for nothing, perhaps it will make them go home and reduce the burden on or social systems. Eliminate welfare and disability and your workforce would increase. I'm sure there are enough jobs out there that if everyone that wanted to work looked, they'd find a job.

Answer 7

Our Founding Fathers did not want corporations to lord over the little guy. That's what is happening in our country..now obviously you've had the "business" education that rips any sense or moral values from you but you probably attend church services every Sunday right?

Our government is supposed to make sure that the rights of OUR CITIZENS do not get trampled by corporations.

Go back and get a MORAL education, you NEED one.

Answer 8

Why can't they do both full employment with a higher minimum wage. If they can't afford it then cut some of the CEO pay.

Answer 9

I agree. They keep raising people who are too lazy to move on with their life. Every job gets boring after awhile. There has to be a way to hire all workers.

Answer 10

china been doing that for decades....until the free market showed them that better to have and just give the unemployed a bowl of rice