Tuesday, November 12, 2013
In Washington State, Home of Highest Minimum Wage, a City Aims Higher
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/14/us/in-washington-state-home-of-highest-minimum-wage-a-city-aims-higher.html?_r=0 Due 18 November 2013 at 6am. Cite the pros and cons of a higher minimum wage, according to basic economic theory: Where will people WANT to work? Why? Where will people FIND work? Why? What will happen to the businesses within Sea Tac? (be sure to look at the geography of Sea Tac) What will happen to prices? On the other hand, what will happen to the economics of people who DO find work in Sea Tac?
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A higher minimum wage would result in many changes in the market. There would be a higher demand for jobs but at the same, employers would hire less people or even fire people to compensate to fund the difference in the increased wage. According to the basic economic theory, it states that minimum wage will influence workers to leave their current job to pursue a job that pays higher. This could mean that teenagers looking for a job may leave school if the job pays enough money. SeaTac, a city thinking about raising the minimum wage from $9.19 to $15 might expect an increase in the supply of workers but ultimately be unable to find a job as employers can only hire so many people. Prices of SeaTac is bound to rise due to the inflation of the dollar value. As minimum wage is increased, businesses will have to get the money to fund the increased wage, so they will be forced to increase the cost of the services and products they provide. People who are able to find work in SeaTac will be able to get a better living conditions. It is estimated that if the vote passes to increase minimum wage to $15, it will pump $54 million into the local economy. This money will then be dispersed throughout the city, increasing living conditions of many families in the city. This will help the city since it is stated that 1 in 6 people are living below the poverty line. Although the effects of the increased minimum wage is not completely certain. In 2000, San Francisco International Airport increased their pay to $12.93, but according to Arindrajit Dube, this high pay didn't seem to have an effect on the level of employment at the airport.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage has more cons than pros in my view. The clear pros are that teens can experience their first jobs at a substantial wage. This will provide some incentive for them to enter the work force and perhaps even start investing and creating savings accounts. There are many cons however. Perhaps the incentive to go to college may get lower because the teens will expect their jobs to be decent paying jobs. The negative idea of going to a crappy job that is low-paying and motivates you to go to college and seek a career is now gone with a higher minimum wage. Also, in economic theory, the supply of workers will be far greater than the employers' demand for workers. Workers will end up in low-skill jobs because they pay adequate or well enough. Higher-skilled jobs will have fewer workers flocking for employment. However, the number of people to actually become employed is likely to be very low since the marginal cost of hiring more people increases at an increasing rate as you have more labor. Employers won't allow that so unemployment may actually increase. SeaTac, a city thinking about raising the minimum wage from $9.19 to $15 might expect an increase in the supply of workers but ultimately be unable to find a job as employers can only hire so many people. Prices of SeaTac is bound to rise due to the inflation of the dollar value. As minimum wage is increased, businesses will have to get the money to fund the increased wage, so they will be forced to increase the cost of the services and products they provide. People who are able to find work in SeaTac will be able to get a better living conditions. It is estimated that if the vote passes to increase minimum wage to $15, it will pump $54 million into the local economy. It is believed that raising minimum wage should not really affect employment rates, but I believe it will have a negative effect on employment and incentives to seek out a career in a high-skilled economy.
ReplyDeleteThere are many benefits that come from an increase in minimum wage, however, these benefits are often matched by the potential harm that can occur. If minimum wage is increased in a certain area, workers are going to flock there. They will want to work in this area for there is a guarantee that they will be making a higher wage if hired. However, just because these people want to work in this higher wage region, doesn't mean they will be able to find work. Employers will be less eager to hire new workers because they now have to pay employees much more, for the same amount of production. An increase in a minimum wage could potentially increase unemployment rates if employers cant afford to pay their current number of workers. SeaTac businesses closer to the airport or in the airport would raise the amount they pay their employees, but would hire less workers. Companies further from the airport would potentially have to resort to shrinking their staff in order to pay them the legal wage. Prices throughout the SeaTac area would increase. If these companies have to pay their employees more and their customers now have more money, there is no reason for there not to be a price increase. The increased minimum wage would help those below the poverty line significantly, if they can hold a job. Although prices would increase about proportionally to the income increase, these people would now be able to pay their bills that come from places outside the SeaTac region.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage is dangerous for the economy. More people will want to work minimum wage jobs, but less minimum wage jobs will be available. The demand of jobs will shoot up, the supply will go down, and the result will be a higher unemployment rate for low paying jobs. Additionally, prices of products will go up because the labor input will drop. SeaTac would collapse if it doubled the minimum wage, in theory halfing those who are working, and doubling prices of products. Even with jobs, the effects will be minimal as the higher prices of products will make the higher pay seem less substantial. A higher minimum wage will surely lead to a worse economy.
ReplyDeleteThere are several pros and cons to incorporating a higher minimum wage in an area. Pros are that individuals will be making a higher income, and there will be more of an incentive to work.Cons are that the costs of living will increase greatly, less people will find jobs, people will be laid off and less work will be done for industries. People will want to work inside of SeaTac,Washington in order to make more money. However, people will find work outside of Washington because companies in Washington are not hiring as many people. SeaTac, a city thinking about raising the minimum wage from $9.19 to $15 might expect an increase in the supply of workers but ultimately be unable to find a job as employers can only hire so many people. As a result of this, a company's costs will become exponentially higher. A company will then raise its prices to compensate for higher wages. People who do get work in Seatac, will be better off financially, as they are making more money. These people will be higher skilled as well. In the article it states that, "Higher wages do, however, attract more skilled workers and reduce employee turnover, Mr. Dube said, and over time that can change the composition of the work force."
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Raising minimum wage would surely help families to pay their bills. But what people overlooked are the chances they might get fired because of over budget of a firm. The opponents of raising minimum wage argue that increasing the minimum wage would have short-term benefits but would lead to long-term losses as businesses adapted by cutting employees, raising prices or moving out. Sea Tac city is where people want to work in; however, the employers in Sea Tac don't want to hire people because of minimum wage. People who DO have a job in Sea Tac will definitely have a better living conditions since they will be making $15 an hour.
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning, the pros of having a higher minimum wage are people being able to pay off their bills, businesses will attract more skilled workers, and will reduce employee turnover. People will want to work at minimum wage jobs because of the increased income, but less of them will be available. People will end up having to go to other places to find work because eventually all the minimum wage jobs in Sea Tac will be filled and will also have to cut down on workers. Eventually prices will go up because businesses will have to adjust to pay their bills and workers. For the people who do find work in Sea Tac, the higher minimum wage will not seem as much when the prices jump up to meet it.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage in Sea Tac will cause many businesses to lay off many of its employees to compensate for increased salaries of their remaining employees. Many people will be left without jobs, only those that are the most skilled will be hired and have jobs available for them. There is already declining middle class with many struggling and becoming homeless, this would just cause more people to be put that situation. Those who are able to get a job paying $15 or more will be fortunate but for the most who are not, will struggle. Raising minimum wage will also cause the price of commodities to increase, if employers have to pay their employees more then they will increase the price of the service of good they sell to provide for this change. So not will people be laid off, they won't be able to afford the same lifestyle, circumstances will only get harder. On the bright of all this, those will jobs will be able to live a bit more comfortably but once again probably not by much because most goods and services will be more expensive. Employers will hire more trained and skilled employees, in order to have less employees. As a result of a higher minimum wage, supply of available workers will shift to the right and demand for workers will shift to the left.
ReplyDeleteI think that many businesses will want to relocate away from Sea Tac, Washington, however many people will migrate here looking for better job opportunities, trying to fulfill the American Dream. Unfortunately, they won't realize that the higher minimum wage only causes less people to hired and a higher cost of living.
Increasing the minimum wage would undoubtedly have many short-term benefits, but the long-term loss will be much more harmful. Looking at the pros, the increase of minimum wage from $9.19/hour to $15/hour would surely be a great way for teens to start off their first jobs. The rise would also be greatly beneficial to many families/employees who are struggling to pay the monthly rent right now, if they are not part of the 1/6 people living below the poverty line. The staggering statistics concerning how many people are homeless and can barely put food on the table every night in SeaTac go in favor of raising the minimum wage in the district. However, we must consider the cons that will inevitably catch up with Proposition 1. Employers will certainly cut many employees from their business, whether they are in or near the Sea-Tac airport. The rise in minimum wage may lead to a rise in price of products, which may result in less sales overall. Hypothetically thinking, if all this were to happen, employers would undoubtedly want to save their money and fire employees, who are each then costing them $15/hour. So even if people went looking for jobs, their chances of getting one would be slim to none. Those who are lucky enough to find a job at that point would benefit greatly from the high minimum wage. Overall, though, the cons of having such a high minimum wage will only call for hindrance of those trying to jump above the poverty line in SeaTac
ReplyDeleteA pro of a higher minimum wage would be better paid employees and a con would be market prices rising due to a higher pay. People will want to work where the minimum wage is higher, maybe simple jobs that used to have a regular minimum wage. All the job seekers will be attracted to one area where the minimum wage is highest, but not all of them will get a job because now that the pay is higher, the less workers they will need. Not everyone seeking a job will find one due to the drastic increase in demand for them. The businesses in Sea Tac will have a plethora of workers and higher less. There will probably be less businesses willing to pay minimum wage. The prices will be inflated because of the increase in minimum wage, prices merely cannot remain the same as they were. The people who do find work in Sea Tac will obviously see an increase in wage but it will be evened out by the amount the prices rise.
ReplyDeletePros of raising the min rage includes workers better off and increased purchasing power for many. Cons includes risking businesses shutting down due to not being able to afford to
ReplyDeletepay min wage and prices being raised to accommodate the new min wage. If the min wage in Washington increases to 15/hr, then people would be willing to work anywhere
since they would get a higher wage no matter where they are employed. Though employers might be more hesitant to hire more people since already having some employees would cost a lot more. Business in Sea Tac might dwindle since costs will go up. Businesses might be forced to lay off some. People who do find work will have more purchasing power.
Basic economic theory states that if wages are too high, economic growth will suffer.
ReplyDeleteThere are many who believe that an increase in the minimum wage would bolster the worker, who in turn, would bolster the economy. Others however believe that with an increase in minimum wage, the workingman will find that their jobs will be cut because employers will no longer afford to run his business due to high overhead. Either the individual job will be lost or the business entity closed.
The pros to a higher minimum wage would be that if a proposition such as the one in the Seatac community was passed, citizens would be more apt to revitalize the suffering economy by purchasing goods and services that had been stifled by consumers who had felt the effects of the recession. There would be a reinvigoration of the “middle class” which is slowly disappearing in America today.
The cons of a higher minimum wage would be that higher salaries mean more overhead for the employer. Employers need to maintain a workforce by calculating how much money it takes to run a company efficiently and effectively. If salaries were raised with no regard to an individual company’s “bottom line,” then being able to stay afloat and run a successful and economically vital entity, would be impossible to do. This would mean that not just the job would suffer, so too would the business entity as well.
Most workers would want to align themselves in companies that pay the highest minimum wage. The minimum wage will be within the scope of each local jurisdiction without benefit of uniformity with federal and state requirements. If there are 1000 positions available within a multitude of companies in a local area, the company which pays the highest minimum wage would fill their need for the best of the workers and leave behind the “leftovers” for the others. This will give the company with the higher minimum wage an advantage over the others who offer a lower one. The competition for jobs will be tighter and those areas might find its increase in population will affect the prices of homes, schools, and services. Others who will need to find work in areas with lower minimum wages, will find that little has changed for them. Both of these scenarios can have a negative economic impact.
The increase will have a variety of effects on the people of the United States. For one it will be more beneficial for the teens just getting their first jobs because it will be giving them more buying power. With this increase will also come with many cons as well. Many companies might fail and shutdown because they are unable to afford these new set prices for the pay of their workers. More people will be laid off and people will have to do more work for the higher salaries. The prices of SeaTac are most likely to rise because of the inflation of the dollar value. If the minimum wage is increased, businesses will have to get the money to fund the increased wage, which results in them increasing the cost of the services and products they are providing. This will also increase the standard of living conditions as the city’s will be getting more improvements from the $54 million that is being put into the local economy from the increase of the minimum wage.
ReplyDeleteThere are both pros and cons to having a higher minimum wage. The pros of having a higher minimum wage would giving people more money to pay their bills, and support their family, and businesses will attract more skilled workers. The cons include the risks needed to take in order to keep the business running. Some businesses may have to shutdown if they can't afford to raise their minimum wage without losing money. More people would want to work at minimum wage jobs due to the increased income, but their will be fewer jobs given out because of it. Many people will end up having to search for other places to find work, because soon the minimum wages positions in Sea Tac will all be filled.Eventually the prices will increase because the money paid to the workers and certain bills will have to be adjusted. As for the people who do find work at Sea Tac, the higher minimum wages they get paid do nothing, when their prices are increased to just as much.
ReplyDeleteIncreasing minimum wage would definitely stimulate the economy. I say this because it's proven that when people have more money, they spend more money. As long as the money is being spent in legal markets, the economy will be stimulated. The increase would not only stimulate the economy but it would give households greater stability. The flip side to the increase in minimum wage would be that it would put too much of a burden on employment rates. Because employers would no longer higher as many people due to their budgets, there would be an increase in the number of people that are unemployed after being laid off due to budget cuts. People will then work in places that pay more than minimum wage like dental offices, schools, and plumbing companies to avoid being affected by the increase in minimum wage. Businesses in Sea Tac might expect an increase in the supply of workers but ultimately be unable to find a job as employers can only hire so many people. The prices of Sea Tac are most likely to rise because of the inflation of the dollar value. People who are able to find work in Sea Tac will be able to get a better living conditions
ReplyDeletePros and cons of having higher minimum wages, people are able to pay off the debt that's a pro, another pro is businesses will attract more skilled workers, cons include risking businesses shutting down due to not being able to afford to pay minimum wages and prices being raised to accommodate to new minimum wages. More people are going to be willing to work at minimum wage jobs soon other's will have to search elsewhere because positions in sea tac will be all filled. Products will soon increase because of the minimum wage increase, this will also increase the standard of living conditions is the city's will be getting more improvements from the $54 million that is being put into the local economy from the increase of the minimum wages.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage is extremely detrimental to the economy. Minimum wage jobs will increase in popularity, but less of those jobs will be available. The supply of jobs will drop as the demand of jobs will go up, resulting in a higher unemployment rate for low paying jobs. Product prices will increase as well because the labor input will decrease. SeaTac would suffer tremendously if the minimum wage were doubled, as product prices would essentially double. the effects will be minuscule as the higher prices of products will offset the higher pay seem completely. A higher minimum wage will prove to be detrimental to the economy.
ReplyDeleteThe pros of having a higher minimum wage are more dedicated workers that will work in the long run, are more dependable. The cons are that there is a higher demand for jobs, but less jobs to distribute. By having a higher minimum wage, people will want to work in those higher paying jobs. Since there are less jobs, though, they will turn to jobs elsewhere that are hiring less people. Jobs within the area of Sea Tac, a major city in which people want to work, will decrease and less people will find work there. Prices in Sea Tac would increase since employers would need to pay more money to their workers and cover the costs of their business. The people in the economy that do want to work in Sea Tac would be forced to relocate to other cities to find work and end up getting paid less.
ReplyDeleteAllowing a higher minimum wage would, in the long run, be a hindrance to the economy, though it may have some short-term benefits initially. At first, a lot more people will want to work at minimum wage. Those below the poverty line will find a reliable income to get food on the table and pay the bills, while teens will find a minimum wage job a worthy investment of time. This means that the job demand will go up, and therefore, the supply will quickly become inadequate to meet those quantities, causing a greater cost to products, since producers are spending so much more on the production. It is also likely that they will begin to cut off employees, and make those that are left behind do more work, in turn making their salary worth less. The effects of allowing this seemingly good idea are actually worse than staying as we are.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage is risky. While there are short term benefits, there would be long term losses like less jobs for people who want them, companies laying off workers, raising their prices, and simply moving out. Higher minimum wage does however, attract more skilled workers and reduce employee turnover. The demand for jobs increases with a higher minimum wage while supply decreases. The new increase in wages would simply almost cancel out with the increase in prices to compensate for business losses. Less people in SeaTac would be able to find jobs. Those that really need the minimum wage increase will not benefit much at all in the long run as much as the people who are using their voting power to increase wages.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage is both advantageous and risky. It's advantageous because the worker is obviously going to be getting paid more. It's risky because as a result of the higher minimum wage, prices will rise and there will be an immense number of people looking for jobs in Washington. Those people will not get any jobs because not only will companies be hesitant to hire new workers, but they'll also be cutting off a couple of the old ones too. When the minimum wage goes up businesses will be forced to raise their prices to try and fight going out of businesses. Raising the minimum wage will eventually do more harm than good.
ReplyDeletePeople will want to work where the higher paid jobs are. Since everyone will be trying to get a job where the minimum wage rose, there will be a high supply of workers but an unlikely chance of an individual getting a job. Firms will get rid of jobs within there own firm because they can't afford to pay that many workers. There will most likely be a spike in job availability in surrounding cities because people will leave their jobs to work in the city with higher wages. Another downfall I see from this is that someone could be working at a firm for 15 dollars an hour now. But when the minimum wage rises, their 15 dollars an hour won't change. Why would someone continue working that job when they can work at McDonald's, a much easier job. SeaTac will higher less people but more people will want a job their. Their prices will go up because they need to make more money to pay their workers more. People who find work in SeaTac will be happy I presume.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage in my view has more pros than cons. Yes it will get more people wanting to work but what these people dont understand is as minimum wage goes up, the cost of daily items also goes up. Yes 15$ an hour is nice but a 10$ big mac doesnt sound too apatizing, not to mention that more kids will drop out of school to aquire this "Good payment" other places will hire less because the cost to hire will be to expensive.Prices of SeaTac is bound to rise due to the inflation of the dollar value. As minimum wage is increased, businesses will have to get the money to fund the increased wage, so they will be forced to increase the cost of the services and products they provide. People who are able to find work in SeaTac will be able to get a better living conditions.
ReplyDeleteA higher minimum wage would be beneficial at first, but might have serious consequences. With a high minimum wage, people will be begging to work at the places where the minimum wage has risen, creating a large pool (or supply) of workers and a very low chance of an individual being hired, because firms will need to decrease the amount of jobs they offer in an effort to save more money. When people leave their suburban jobs for jobs in the city, it is inevitable that the best place to find a job will be the empty suburbs, having been left for the higher minimum wage. SeaTac will most likely hire less people, even though more people will want to work there. The prices of their products will increase in order for the firm to be able to pay its workers.
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