The Minimum Wage Battle Rages On

Remember when people started screaming about raising the minimum wage in the middle of the pandemic? That screaming actually hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s grown even louder in the face of inflation. Lawmakers, workers, and labor organizations pushing for an increase on both the federal and state level. 

Here’s Five Fast Facts on Minimum Wage……:

1. 💰Where Is It? - The Federal minimum wage sits at $7.25. It has not increased since 2009 back when Michael Jackson was still alive. Young adults, women, and people of color are most likely to be minimum wage workers.
2. 🏠 Down Low - This is well below what economists consider a living wage, or the amount of money that allows people to afford housing, food, and necessities. According to their data, a living wage is $26.93. 
3. 📈 Lift Up - The Economic Policy Institute is pushing the Raise the Wage act that would gradually raise the federal minimum wage to $17 an hour by 2028.
4. 👆 Higher - Other groups are pushing for a $20 minimum wage, saying it’s too late for $17 to even make a difference at this point.
5. 🙄 For Real? - Lawmakers argue that the current minimum wage is totally fine and raising it will lead to more inflation. That’s not necessarily true.

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🔥Bottom line: How you feel about this situation will probably come down to many things: age, profession, political affiliation, etc. But numbers don’t lie. Minimum wage is not livable, especially for someone who depends on it as their only source of income. Granted, it might be fine for a part timer flipping burgers, but there are big box retailers who pay full-time positions at this amount, too. 

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What do you think minimum wage should be?

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