Minimum Wage in the United States
According to statistics documented on Bankrate, the current highest minimum wage belongs to Seattle, Washington at fifteen dollars an hour. At fifteen dollars an hour, an average individual working forty hours a week would make less than $29,000 a year. Factor in the cost of housing, medical care, food and basic necessities and that’s barely enough for one person to survive comfortably.
Now what about a single mother raising a family? How about a family that needs to pay for special medical or child care? The cost of living keeps rising, and the wages for workers do not keep up. Seattle is rare in its wage system. While the Obama Administration pushed to hike the wages up to $10.10 an hour according to USA Today, the change was never made. And more than a few states still adopt a wage policy below minimum federal regulations. States where wages can be as low as $6.25 for small organization workers have set up a barrier for people that they cannot possibly penetrate.
This leads to a cycle of poverty, and denies many Americans the leisure of basic living comfort. Individuals working overtime and weekends still struggle to put food on their tables, let alone think about extracurricular spending and higher education for future generations. It’s day to day living with no foreseeable escape. The worst part? Minimum wage jobs are often the most labor intensive. Factory workers, roofers and retail workers spend more hours on their feet, only to end their day with a fraction of what “more established” desk jobs pay. But how are they supposed to get themselves into a better position when pursuing higher education or certifications would only mean spending more money that they do not have? How is it that in a country as advanced as the United States, such a large percentage of individuals have to think about surviving on petty dollars a day? There is no hope for development or progression for these people as they struggle to make it through the day, let alone plan a promising future.
Not only are minimum wage workers denied pay worthy of their labor, they are often not given the option to be a part of insurance programs and policies intended on making the cost and quality of life better for Americans. In such situations, families are denied health insurance, or worse, teased with the idea only to find out the plans are far too unaffordable for their wages to cover. This leads to improper health care among low-income workers, which in the long run results in higher costs for medical care as potential health issues worsen. As one of the leading world powers it should be the first priority of our government to take action and give a voice and a choice to those who have been silenced. Low income and minimum wage workers in our country are deprived of basic human comfort, and that is especially disturbing when evaluating their work conditions and hours. Big businesses are in the spotlight way too often for exploitation and unfair wages of workers for action to progress so slowly. As a country we need to develop our wage system, and set a standard that ensures a comfortable quality of life for those who work so hard for it. It should not have to rise to the extreme of union strikes for this issue to get serious attention.
With the election now behind us, this is a topic that should be on everyone’s mind. Progression of our country as a whole lies in the hands of the masses, and the masses cannot progress if they are presented with obstacles impossible to overcome.
