Minimum wage increase

**qtkitty** · 05-17-2008, 01:54 AM

Maybe i am the only one who will be excited about this but minimum wage is increasing here in July

I know that minimum wage increase has been argued to hurt the economy, but i personally think it is long over due it was impossible to live off $5.15 as of a few years ago. Now with it increasing to $6.55 in July federally that will help some.

But however with the increases in prices of gas and food will that possibly make the new mimimum wage under the poverty level?

**qtkitty** · 05-17-2008, 02:25 AM

http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/08poverty.shtml

For a single person making federal minimum wage of $6.55 will be making $13,624 if they work full time all year. The poverty level for a single person for 2008 is $10,400. Good thing that they are raising minimum wage because here currently minimum wage in NC is $6.15 which comes to $12,792.

**YankeeMom** · 05-17-2008, 08:09 AM

It's $7.25/hr here.

But minimum wage is not intended to put a person above poverty level. It was never intended for people to try to live on minimum wage. It's a "starting out" wage. Unfortunately, a lot of employers take advantage of that and underpay employees min. wage just because they can. I'd much rather see them do away with min. wage

**JOrlyn** · 05-17-2008, 08:19 AM

$8.00 here in Massachusetts

**Jskell911** · 05-17-2008, 10:42 AM

We are at $7.65 here in CT. Will increase to $8.00 in July.

**Dad_of_4** · 05-17-2008, 10:59 AM

All raising the minimum wage does is raise prices and unemployment. Think about it. Same a fast food resturant is paying minimum wage of $6. The goverment mandates it be raised to $8. So, the owner will have a 25% increase in labor costs. He then has four options.

1. Raise prices to compensate for the increased labor expense.
2. Layoff workers to keep labor expenses down.
3. Take a lower profit from his business.
4. A combination of 1 and 2.

Most owners take option 4. They try to streamline the workforce while also increasing prices. So now the employee is making more, but it is also costing that employee more to buy a burger. After a very short time all that has been accomplished is the paycheck may be bigger but the buying power remains the same.

If raising the minimum wage is such a good idea why don't we just double it? Or better yet, make it $50 and hour. Then everyone will be rich.

**C@rol** · 05-17-2008, 11:25 AM

"In April, New Jersey's acting Governor Richard Codey signed a new state minimum wage into law. This new law will bring the minimum wage to $7.15 per hour by October 2006. New Jersey's minimum wage has been the same as the federal minimum wage, $5.15 per hour, since 1999. The new law will raise New Jersey's wage higher than the federal amount by $2.00."

http://www.lsnjlaw.org/english/job/wage/minimumwage/

**momof42003** · 05-17-2008, 02:49 PM

Ours is 7.95 here in Oregon.

**annymoll** · 05-17-2008, 03:54 PM

I think it is 5.15 here, but even McDonald's here pays better than that. We pay our housekeeper 12 bucks an hour, and she sits on her duff and watches Young and Restless every day, and swims before she leaves.Start a little cleaning business.