Raising Minimum Wage?

            The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives introduced the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2012. This bill, if passed, would raise minimum wage to $9.80 by 2014. Christine Owens stated “Millions of the nation’s lowest-paid workers are putting in long hours and working multiple jobs, yet are still struggling to afford basic expenses,”. The bill would also raise the very low minimum wage of tipped workers from $2.13 per hour, where it has been since 1991, to $6.85 over five years. The paychecks of millions of hard working people making minimum wage have been falling while corporate profits are reaching record levels. Before Barack Obama was president he pledged to raise minimum wage to $10 by 2011. Raising minimum wage would help in national economic recovery. “The Economic Policy Institute estimates that the Harkin-Miller proposal would generate more than $25 billion in new consumer spending, which would result in more than 100,000 new full-time jobs.” Here are some facts about minimum wage as it is today at $7.25: Minimum wage would be $10.74 if we had kept up with inflation over the past 40 years. If one person worked full time for a whole year making minimum wage they would only make $15,080. No person working 40 hours a week making minimum wage could afford a two bedroom apartment anywhere in the US. There are only 19 states that have raised the minimum wage over $7.25. As of an October 2010 poll, 67% of Americans agree to raise minimum wage to $10. This sounds great, and one would think it would be a big help to many families trying to survive on minimum wage. However, when minimum wage increases, so does the price of everything else. Employers need to spend more to employ workers, therefore they need to make just as much of a profit, so the cost of goods will increase. It is very hard to say whether or not it is a good idea to raise minimum wage. Won’t it just equal out in the end with the raising of other prices?