Prologue
If you really want change to happen:
- Pick up virtual pen and email your legislators
- Sign a petition (or 100)
- Write a petition (or 100)
- Donate
- VOTE
- Call legislators
- Do your own research, learn and share your knowledge with others
OR go on living in a world ruled by white supremacy where children fear for their lives going to school not because of Coronavirus, but because they don't know the next time or place a school shooting will occur. Where black and brown lives don't matter. Where MULTIPLE police officers can post tik tok videos OF THEMSELVES online saying "I can take your man if I want to" with the full implication that they have the power to arrest, brutalize, or kill whomever they want with to without repercussions. Where ESSENTIAL WORKERS are being paid $2.50/hour because they're expected to make the rest up in tips, or, even better $7.25 (the federal minimum wage). So, what do you think? Should we get this part started?
Why We Need To Raise the Federal Minimum Wage NOW
My name is Amy Abrigo, and, like many other American citizens, when I was 16 I worked as a server for a fast food company. Because I was expected to make tips, I was only given $2.50 an hour when working as a server. Otherwise, I was given the federal minimum wage, which is now $7.25/hour. Let me do some basic math for you. If an individual worked full-time for 40 hours a week, their gross pay would be $290/week or $1160/month or $15,080/year. That is before taxes. Even if we stick with the gross pay, this is not a live-able wage, and it is definitely not enough to cover a family or to pay off medical bills for corona virus after the worker gets infected working in their position that only pays them minimum wage because they have no other legal way to make money.
On July 4, 1776, in our declaration of independence against Great Britain, we agreed: "all men are created equal," and "that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
On July 4, 2020, the federal minimum wage has not increased since 2009.
"Today, the federal minimum of $7.25 leaves an adult with two children thousands of dollars below the federal poverty threshold. This is unacceptable.
H.R. 2150, the Raise the Wage Act, would increase the federal minimum wage to $12 by 2020, eliminate the tipped minimum wage, and link the minimum wage to increases in the median wage after 2020, so that its value does not erode over time. According to the Economic Policy Institute, this modest increase would give nearly 35 million workers a raise (28 million directly and 7 million indirectly) and lift approximately 4.5 million people out of poverty.
Raising the federal minimum wage will also stimulate consumer spending, help businesses’ bottom lines, and grow the economy. A modest increase would improve worker productivity, and reduce employee turnover and absenteeism. It would also boost the overall economy by generating increased consumer demand."
"Raising the minimum wage reduces absenteeism. When workers earn higher wages they are absent from work less, leading to increased productivity. A 2010 paper from economists Laura Bucilia and Curtis Simon concluded that higher minimum wages are associated with lower rates of absenteeism for reasons other than illness."
Raising the Minimum Wage Boosts the Economy
- Raising the minimum wage does not kill jobs.
- Leading economists have found that increases in the minimum wage have no discernible effect on employment, including employment in high-impact sectors like restaurants and retail.
- Recent experience in cities that have raised their minimum wages provides further support.
- San Francisco increased its tipped minimum wage to $12.25, before tips, and experienced positive job growth in the leisure and hospitality industry the following year.
- Raising the minimum wage increases consumer spending and boosts the economy.
- A study by Doug Hall and David Cooper estimated that a $2.55 increase in the minimum wage would increase the earnings of low-wage workers by $40 billion and result in a significant increase in GDP and employment.
- A raise in the minimum wage predominantly benefits low-wage workers, precisely those most likely to put additional income directly back into the economy, kick starting a virtuous cycle of greater demand for goods and services, job growth, and increased productivity.
- Red and blue states have recently passed minimum wage increases.
- Since 2014, 16 states have raised their minimum wage, including red states like Alaska, Arkansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and West Virginia.
- Republican and Democratic presidents have supported minimum wage increases. Twelve presidents, including Republicans Eisenhower, Nixon, Ford, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush, have signed legislation increasing the federal minimum wage.
- Across party lines, Americans support an increase in the minimum wage.
- A national survey conducted by Hart Polling found that 75 percent of Americans support raising the federal minimum wage to $12.50 by 2020—including 92 percent of Democrats, 73 percent of Independents, and 53 percent of Republicans."
Now, all the above was true BEFORE COVID-19. However, now that we are in the midst of a global pandemic, it is even more necessary because these are ESSENTIAL WORKERS who are risking their lives every time they come to work. Additionally, while they are working 40-70 hour work weeks at minimum wage to feed hungry American citizens, people supported by the CARES Act are being paid at least $600/week for their safety. I agree with this and want the CARES Act to be extended indefinitely or until December 31, 2020. But WHY should ESSENTIAL WORKERS be paid LESS to RISK THEIR LIVES to serve the American people? This doesn't make any sense. We need to take care of our essential workers.
If you'd like to read more on this issue, here are some fantastic articles:
- Gradually raising the minimum wage to $15 would be good for workers, good for businesses, and good for the economy
- 6 simple reasons we should raise the minimum wage right now
- Why America Needs a $15 Minimum Wage
Please, as a voting American citizen, I urge you to do all that is in your power to raise the Federal and state-level minimum wage NOW.
Sincerely,
Amy Abrigo
Fact Sheet - Raising the Minimum Wage |