| Super Moderator  Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Seattle (grew up around D.C.) Gender:  Posts: 8,013 Country:  Points: 29,896, Level: 99 | Level up: 94%, 104 Points needed |  |  Quote: |
Originally Posted by alias I disagree with you. I say most people on minimum wage are either people in school, retired, or illegal aliens. Do you have any data to disprove my opinion? You better have because you just called me a liar. | Who are minimum wage workers?
An estimated 7.3 million workers (5.8% of the workforce) would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage to $7.25 by June 2007. Of these workers, 72.1% are adults and 60.6% are women. Close to half (43.9%) work full time and another third (34.5%) work between 20 and 34 hours per week. More than one-third (35%) of the workers who would benefit from an increase to $7.25 are parents of children under age 18, including 760,000 single mothers. The average minimum wage worker brings home about half of his or her family's weekly earnings.
Why do we need a minimum wage increase?
A minimum wage increase of $2.10 by 2007 would raise the wages of 7.3 million workers. A minimum wage increase is needed to restore the minimum wage to historic levels. The inflation-adjusted value of the minimum wage is 26% lower in 2004 than it was in 1979. In addition, comparing the wages of minimum wage workers to average hourly wages, we find that the wages of minimum wage workers have not kept up with the wages of other workers. The minimum wage is 33% of the average hourly wage of American workers, the lowest level since 1949.
Congress has not increased the minimum wage in seven years—the second-longest stretch of government inaction since the minimum wage was enacted in 1938. When Congress does not increase the minimum wage, the minimum wage continues to lose value.
All this information speaks to minimum wage. This isn't even touching on a "living wage" which is necessary to sustain a family and is much higher than the minimum wage. Think of all the people trying to support their families on 7-13 dollars an hour!!! Insane in such a wealthy country.
The top 10% should not control 90% of our country's wealth like they are currently doing. --- help me Instant Runoff Voting, you're my only hope --- There is little doubt that the world in general is more liberal than it was 50 years ago and beyond. Conservatives are simply roadblocks on the path to an ever more progressive and liberal world. What a sad existence.
Last edited by hevusa; 05-11-2006 at 03:25 PM.
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