The current minimum wage is $7.25, which is the equivalent of two gallons of milk, a fast food meal, or two gallons of gasoline. Can you imagine working 12 hours a day and only having enough money to pay the rent and feed your family? With all those long working hours, you can barely afford to pay your utility bills and after that, you don't have enough money or time for luxuries like clothes or vacations. In fact, you have no savings, you're in huge debt, and you're living paycheck to paycheck. This is the story of millions of American workers who are employed at minimum wage. What is shocking about this story is that millions of Americans would be saved from this life of poverty if the US government raised the minimum wage. This would not only help workers, but also the economy, because raising the minimum wage would put additional money in the pockets of minimum wage workers and additional spending would help restore consumer spending. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Nearly 8 million Americans work full time and still remain below the poverty line. Some argue that raising the minimum wage will only benefit workers who may not need it. This argument is flawed, according to Economic Policy Institute analysis, which shows that "most low-wage workers live in low-wage households, and 84 percent of workers in low-wage jobs are at least 20 years ". (LA Times, Stern and Camden). In my view, anyone who shows up to work regularly and puts in quality hours should be paid enough to lift them out of poverty. I also think that raising the minimum wage is a matter of human dignity, because imagine that after a long day of work, you know that despite long hours of hard work, you cannot feed your family, cover their needs and pay for your living. without government support. What kind of message does this send to a person about the dignity of their work and the pride in taking personal responsibility for their family? Additionally, some critics also claim that raising the minimum wage would hugely increase unemployment because businesses would cut workers to maintain the minimum wage. low cost. This was proven false by a Congressional budget analysis, which indicated that "the potential employment and unemployment impacts of an increase in the federal minimum wage rate...are difficult to predict, but are likely small." (Congressional Digest, 12). The Congressional Budget Office also estimated that the gains from raising the minimum wage should outweigh the costs. They found that raising the minimum wage to $10.10 would result in 900,000 fewer people living in poverty and increase average family income by up to three times the poverty line (Chat, 1). Businesses would also benefit from an increase in the minimum wage. According to a study by the Industrial Relations Institute at the University of California, Berkeley, it found that the annual turnover rate of security screeners dropped from 95% to 19% when their hourly wages increased by $6.45 to $10 per hour. Not only did revenue improve, but also 35% of employers reported improved job performance and customer service., 28(1), 133-165.