Introduction
The minimum wage is the lowest reasonable price that an employer is legally obliged to compensate for work, not including collective agreements and custom employee contracts. The federal and state governments are responsible for setting their minimum wage policies, which may differ. The aspect of wages is a grave concern in the modern world due to the discussion among economic experts, whose opinions differ on whether it should increase or stay stagnant (Kops, 2017). The increase in the minimum wage is regarded as a legislative approach to protect low-income earners against exploitation by employers. However, government involvement in increasing salaries has violated the laws of supply and demand, which are responsible for setting effective market prices in a competitive market, negatively impacting the economy.
Pros of Increasing the Minimum Wage
The Great Depression was characterized by high unemployment rates of 25%, an opportunity that employers took advantage of to lower wages. As a reaction mechanism, legislators established the minimum wage. The underlying merits of a rise in minimum salary focus on the financial well-being of unskilled and semi-skilled workers, and the reduction of the poverty index. Without established wage restrictions, employers tend to exploit workers by instituting low pay, thus impoverishing them. A few benefits of raising the minimum wage include:
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Reduced Poverty
Smith (2015) asserts that poverty is a universal challenge. The United States reported the second highest GDP globally in 1995, but was among the three leading developed countries in poverty rates. The statistics indicate an economically stable country but reveal that a majority of its residents live in abject poverty. Increasing the minimum wage is a step towards bridging the income inequality gap between the wealthy and the poor, and functions as an income distribution scheme. In the years following 1995, America’s minimum wage gap increased considerably, leading to poverty reduction as evidenced by its current ranking of 17 among developed nations. Hence, increasing the minimum wage expands the purchasing power of poor citizens and consequently reduces poverty.
Economic Growth
Raising the minimum wage contributes to the circulation of money in the economy in various ways. The growth is an economic catalyst because minimum wage workers can access more wages. This contributes to their purchasing power on an individual, household, and financial needs basis, thereby facilitating trade. The surged spending generates demand for products and services, which contributes to economic growth. The increased demand rates contribute to the creation or expansion of new businesses, which creates additional employment opportunities, consequently reducing the unemployment gap. A higher employment rate contributes to more tax revenues, which the government can allocate to developing infrastructure such as public transport systems that stimulate economic development. A rise in the minimum wage also means that low-income employees get sufficient funds to support their families with minimal government assistance (Neumark & Wascher, 2008). Reducing people’s dependence on government aid allows for a reallocation of federal funds to projects that will expand the country’s economy.
Reduced Turnover Rate and Income Inequality
The principal argument against raising the minimum wage is that it jeopardizes employers’ interests to the detriment of employees. However, this assumption is erroneous, as high rates of employee dissatisfaction contribute to high turnover rates, creating challenges for employers. Increasing the minimum wage reduces the likelihood of employees quitting or switching jobs, benefiting employers by preventing the loss of qualified personnel to competitors. By reducing turnover rates, employers can lower costs associated with recruiting and training new employees. Moreover, marginalized communities, such as women and minorities, are most affected by income inequality. As such, increasing the minimum wage is a viable strategy for alleviating race-based and gender-based income disparities.
Weaknesses of Raising the Minimum Wage
Inflation
Economists against raising the minimum wage proclaim that it has a far-reaching negative impact on employers, employees, and the overall economy (Belman & Wolfson, 2014). Labor is a central element of production cost, which should always be sustained at a low level for business viability. Inflation is a consequence of increased production costs, which increases product prices in the market. An increase in employee remuneration creates wage-push inflation, which indicates a rise in production costs and, hence, an increased product price, which contributes to a loss of currency value. Thus, increasing wages leads to higher production costs and, consequently, inflation (Peneva & Rudd, 2017).
Increased Unemployment
Workers in different industries receive varying compensation according to their productivity levels. Financially, it is not logical to compensate a worker $15 or more per hour when their productivity is lower, for instance, $10. This could create losses for the business and consequently, failure to sustain operations. In accordance with the principles of supply and demand, a rise in manufacturing costs results in a surge in product prices, leading to a decline in demand and subsequent efforts by organizations to reduce their production quantity. This contributes to a decreased demand for labor, leading to layoffs and increases in unemployment rates.
A country with a high unemployment rate experiences reduced economic growth due to declining tax revenues (Kosters, 1996). The government revenue dedicated to improving the country’s infrastructure shrinks, leading to decreased infrastructure progress and affecting economic growth. Expanding unemployment rates contribute to increased poverty rates, which can consequently lead to illegal activities such as crime and substance abuse that result from desperation. An increase in the minimum wage also spurs innovation as firms become incentivized to employ machinery instead of human labor. The resulting increase in labor costs has seen a rapid shift from manual production techniques to automation (Wolfram, 2017). For instance, the use of robots to conduct formulaic activities in various industries such as the culinary, production, and transportation sectors has increased, leading to job losses.
Import Dependency
An increase in minimum wage restricts the aggressiveness of professional ventures, specifically multinational businesses. Countries with inflated remunerations usher in the disintegration of firms or lead to inflation due to high-priced products. Consequently, consumers develop a preference for low-cost imports. Thus, the gross domestic product (GDP) decreases as a considerable segment of the country’s funds is spent on other countries’ products, leading to declined revenue. Import dependency also destroys domestic industries, thereby derailing economic growth. The government bears a responsibility to its taxpayers to advance trade incentives to local manufacturers, and raising the minimum wage discourages domestic investors. For illustration, California increased its minimum wage to $15 in 2022, producing cautionary signs such as the relocation or closure of businesses. Research suggests that full implementation of this policy in California will result in the considerable collapse of business entities (Saltsman, 2017).
Discussion
Raising the minimum wage has implications of increasing employer burdens, leading to declined business growth and high unemployment rates. For instance, most companies in America function with a prearranged remuneration budget, and a rise in wage rates will contribute to slower recruitment and increased layoffs. The wage limit restriction enforced by the government may be based on political motivations rather than on cost-benefit analysis. The arbitrary setting of base salaries is not ideal because different industries have contrasting prevailing elements. It would be unsuitable to govern various economic sectors equally as they operate under dissimilar conditions. The implementation and monitoring of a base salary increment is an extortionate basis, compelling a needless economic burden.
Hence, the labor market should be managed similarly to other markets where the conditions determine the costs. Wages determined by the market eliminate the challenge of arbitrarily fixing the wage rate since different industries can set appropriate compensation, which is flexible depending on market trends. Thus, increasing the base wages denies countless people the opportunity to acquire apprenticeship chances, contributing to missed opportunities for a learning platform that equips under-skilled and low-skilled individuals with the competencies and experience necessary for future recruitment. Several people would be keen to accept a salary below the minimum wage, and increasing the amount deprives them of the chance. When employers can comply with wage increase policies, they counteract the economic implications with reduced employee benefits like on-the-job learning, reduced working hours, the abolition of extra shifts, decreased quality of the work environment, and so forth. Rather than increasing the base salary, the forces of demand and supply should be acknowledged to determine the appropriate compensation for the economic benefits of both the employer and the employees.
Conclusion
The primary objective of raising the base salary is to discourage employers from exploiting their workers through low pay. Raising the minimum wage is an essential strategy for reducing poverty rates, as higher salaries improve workers’ purchasing power and, consequently, their living standards. Increasing the minimum wage also stimulates economic growth, reduces turnover rates, and narrows income inequality gaps. Nonetheless, an increase in the minimum wage is often more damaging than helpful to employers, workers, and the economy. Some detrimental effects of raising the minimum wage include inflation, worsened unemployment, and a decline in local industries; this contributes to an over-reliance on imports. Market drivers of supply and demand are valuable in determining the production cost of aspects such as raw materials and product prices.
In my opinion, the federal minimum wage should be raised; however, this should be done in a way that aligns with the prevailing market and economic conditions. The U.S. Department of Labor (n.d.) indicates that the current federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, which has been set since 2009. I feel that this current minimum wage is incompatible with the current living standards, making it difficult for citizens to live comfortably. However, forcefully raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour could inadvertently exacerbate the economic situation due to the sudden impact on employers, thus contributing to job layoffs. Therefore, the federal government should assess the federal base salary every five years to reflect contemporary living costs, allowing employers to better adjust to the wage increase.
References
- Belman, D., & Wolfson, P. J. (2014). What does the minimum wage do?. Kalamazoo, Michigan W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
- Kops, D. (2017). Economists still cannot decide whether the minimum wage is a good thing. Quartz. https://qz.com/1034952/economists-still-cant-decide-whether-the-minimum-wage-is-a-good-thing/
- Kosters, M. H. (1996). The effects of the minimum wage on employment. Washington, D.C: AEI Press.
- Neumark, D., & Wascher, W. L. (2008). Minimum wages. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press.
- Peneva, E. V., & Rudd, J. B. (2017). The Pass-through of Labor Costs to Price Inflation. Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, 49(8), 1777-1802. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmcb.12449.
- Saltsman, M. (2017, December 15). Why the $15 minimum wage will cost California 400,000 jobs. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelsaltsman/2017/12/15/why-the-15-minimum-wage-will-cost-california-400000-jobs/#31ed6e0943b9
- Smith, L. (2015). Reforming the minimum wage: Toward a psychological perspective. American Psychologist, 70(6), 557-565. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0039579.
- U.S. Department of Labor. (n.d.). Minimum wage. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/minimumwage
- Wolfram, G. (2017, September 12). A case against the minimum wage. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2017/09/12/a-case-against-the-minimum-wage/#285353c7499e
The Autobiography Of Miss Jane Pittman By Ernest James Gaines
The author of The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, Ernest J. Gaines, is a male African American author who has taken full advantage of his culture by writing about rural Louisiana. His stories mainly tell the struggles of blacks trying to make a living in racist and discriminating lands. Many of his stories are based on his own family experiences. In Ernest J. Gaines’ novel, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, four themes that are displayed are the nature of leadership, the struggles of racism, the effects of choices and their consequences, and the act of bold disobedience. The author uses this book to help todays society to understand the many tough choices and consequences African Americans had to face in the time of slavery and the civil rights movement. He developed many themes using the effects of that time period.
Ernest J. Gaines was born on January 15, 1933 on River Lake Plantation in Oscar, Louisiana (“Ernest J. Gaines Biography”). His parents, Manuel and Adrienne, worked as sharecroppers on the same plantation their ancestors had labored as slaves. “Ernest was the oldest of seven children and eventually the oldest of 12 children due to his mothers remarriage” (Tolly, Victor). At the age of nine, he joined his parents in the field and dug potatoes for fifty cents a day. Gaines was highly influenced by his aunt who cared for him and his siblings even though she was disabled. Then, at the age of fifteen, Gaines was taken by his mother and stepfather to Vallejo, California, who were searching for work. The education there would be much better for him due to the fact that he wanted to be a writer someday. “He took advantage of this education, which had been denied for him in Louisiana, and he graduated from high school in 1951”(“Ernest J. Gaines Biography”). After graduating from Vallejo Junior College in 1953, Gaines was drafted into the U.S. Army. He spent those next two years serving in both the U.S. and Guam. After he was discharged from the army, he began to focus more on his education (Andrews, William L.).
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Gaines returned to California after being discharged from the army and continued his education at San Francisco State College (Andrews, William L.). He earned a bachelors degree in 1957 at San Francisco State College. “During his studies there, he wrote several short stories, and they were published in the college literary magazine Transfer” (“Ernest J. Gaines Biography”). Eventually, he ended up entering Stanford University’s graduate creative writing program. Soon after his writing skills improved at Stanford, Gaines withdrew from school and dedicated himself to writing full time.
Ernest J. Gaines found his voice and was established as a literary master of American fiction. Between 1960 and 1963, he had a large number of short stories published. “His first novel, Catherine Carmier, was published in 1964 and his second novel, Of Love and Dust, was published in 1971” (Babb, Valerie). Gaines received some critical analysis for these works, but after the publication of The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman he received a large amount of praise for his talents. This book, which was based on historical events, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and eventually was made into a movie which aired on CBS. Gaines received his second Pulitzer Prize nomination with his book A Lesson Before Dying. The film version of this book won the 1999 Emmy Award for best movie (“The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman”).
Ernest J. Gaines is married to Dianne Saulney, and they have homes in both Louisiana and San Francisco. They built a house on the plantation where Gaines’ ancestors had been slaves, and the church he grew up in was moved to their property (“Ernest J. Gaines Biography”). He met his wife, Dianne Saulney, when he returned back from California to the native south to visit his family, and to this day they are still happily married.
Ernest J. Gaines is currently 85 years old. “He has been a Writer-In-Residence at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette since 1983, and he continues to teach creative writing classes” (Tolly, Victor). As of November 2013, he is currently living peacefully with his wife on Louisiana Hwy 1 in Oscar, La. They are living in the house they built on the old plantation property that Gaines grew up on. He says that he used to spend a large amount of time each day dedicated to writing. He specifically stated that he spends “about five hours per week writing instead of five hours per day” (“Ernest J. Gaines Biography”). Throughout his entire life, Ernest J. Gaines has had many great accomplishments and has reached his goals, but it’s all due to his hard work and dedication.
The novel, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, is set in the time period of slavery and the civil rights movement. The civil rights movement occurred in the time period of 1954-1968. It was a long, organized movement which had the goal of enforcing legal rights for African Americans (“Civil Rights Movement Timeline- History”). These rights were already available for other races of Americans, particularly whites. “The civil war had abolished slavery, however it didn’t end the discrimination against blacks” (“Civil Rights Movement Timeline-History”). One event that occurred during the movement was when Rosa Parks got arrested after sitting in the seats at the front of a bus, which were the seats the white people wanted. Her arrest ignited outrage and support, and Parks became “the mother of the modern day civil rights movement” (“Civil Rights Movement Timeline-History”). Other important activists in the movement were Martin Luther King Jr., A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin. After a large amount of time passed, the civil rights movement and all of its activists brought about legislation to end segregation, employment discrimination, and much more. Throughout his novel, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, Ernest J. Gaines uses his own personal experiences and the experiences of others to accurately portray the time period of slavery and the civil rights movement.
In Ernest J. Gaines’, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, four themes that are displayed are the nature of leadership, the struggles of racism, the effects of choices and their consequences, and the act of bold disobedience (Johnson, Jeannine). The author uses this book to help todays society to understand the tough choices and consequences African Americans had to face in the time of slavery and civil rights movement, and developed many themes using this history. One important theme that Gaines portrays is the nature of leadership. This theme is shown primarily through the main character, Jane Pittman. Jane and the people in her community were desperately seeking someone to lead them out of bondage. Jane stated in the story, “‘We ain’t giving up,” I said. “We done gone this far.’” (Gaines,Ernest J.). This quote can connect to the theme of leadership because she held her head high in front of everyone and did not let anyone give up. Jane decided that she needed to take control of the situation and her life. Therefore, she showed the nature of leadership and led herself and others on a journey to a better life. This is a theme because it shows that if people take control of their situation and be a leader, they will do great things in life.
In the novel, the racism is a major and vastly covered theme. This theme is portrayed using the storytelling of the time period that the novel is set in. The novel shows how the transition of blacks from slavery to freedom was not easy. The difficulty of the transition was due to the fact that the white community felt they were superior to blacks because of skin color. In the novel itself, Jane Pittman, who is the main character, tries to restart her life but the whites still continued to degrade her and others. “Her transition to freedom was not an easy one and caused many problems as a result” (Babb, Valerie). She eventually found a better life despite the ongoing discriminations. Although the goal was for racism and slavery to end as the years went on, the reality is that they are still existing and remaining widespread. Racism is a theme in this novel because it shows the treacherous and miserable experiences that blacks had to go through and still are going through today (“The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman”). Therefore, this novel should help people to try to make a change for racism and slavery to end for good.
Another theme that is displayed in the novel is the effect of choices and their consequences. In this novel, freedom means the ability to make personal decisions, and it includes a part that gives the slaves a choice- to stay or to go (Gaines, Ernest J.). Those who chose to go soon realized that freedom was not easily attained. Jane Pittman soon realized this herself. She was aware from the moment of her proclamation that she was free to leave; however, she noticed that being a slave is very different from being free. This is a theme because Jane’s choice to exercise her new freedom validated her entire life (Babb, Valerie). It opened doors for her and taught her many life lessons that she would not have learned if she would have chosen to stay. This can show people to go with the choice that in the end would be the best for them, no matter the consequences.
The last theme that is displayed in the novel is defiance, when means bold disobedience. From the beginning of the novel, the main character, Jane Pittman, refused to give up and continued to hope for a better future. She pursued her dreams and refused to accept the idea of safety in the search of freedom (Johnson, Jeannine). She knew that she had to do whatever it took to get what she wanted. She continued to follow her dreams, and it all payed off for her in the end. This is a theme because it can show people that if they really want something, they should try as hard as they possibly can to get it. It can also show them to never accept giving up, just as Jane did not give up although her journey was tough.
Overall, Ernest J. Gaines’ award winning novel, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, has served as a successful way to display the time period of racism, slavery, and the civil rights movement. Ernest J. Gaines himself has lived a very fulfilling and successful life that should be celebrated. “His unique writing and own personal experiences caused his novels to become much more powerful on the topics that they show” (Babb, Valerie). He used this book to help today’s society to understand the many tough choices and consequences African Americans had to face in the time of slavery and civil rights movement, and developed many important themes using this history.
