The debate surrounding the federal minimum wage has been prevalent in the United Stated since it was first established in 1938 ("Questions"). This topic is so controversial because of the many different viewpoints there are on the minimum wage. There are people who are in favor of increasing it, decreasing it, keeping it the same, or completely abolishing it. Typically, the Democratic standpoint is that the federal minimum wage should be raised, while Republicans generally advocate for a lower or no minimum wage. This issue is especially present in the country today as President Obama has proposed an increase in the federal minimum wage to $15. Some cities have already adopted this as their minimum wage, whereas others remain at the current federal minimum wage of $7.25, or anywhere in between. The minimum wage should be mandated regionally instead of countrywide including the varying costs of living across the United States, less incentive for workers to get an education and move up in their jobs, and the negative impact a minimum wage that is too high has on businesses and our economy, such as jobs lost. 

In order to gain better insight on this topic, it is important to note the statistics on minimum wage workers. Contrary to common thought, in reality, not that many people earning hourly wages are actually earning the minimum wage. The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a report stating that last year a little over 1.5 million people earned the current minimum wage of $7.25, while 1.8 million earned less than this (this includes exceptions such as tipped workers and disability workers). Of all workers earning an hourly wage, 4.3% are earning minimum wage. Most of the workers earning minimum wage are white (77%) and about half are women. Around half are between the ages of 16 and 24. Regionally, there tends to be a larger amount of minimum wage workers in the Southern-most states in the country (Desilver). 

The issue surrounding minimum wage is complex and multifaceted. "The Two Moralities of the Minimum Wage," by Dwight Lee, provides a somewhat new and interesting perspective on minimum. Minimum wage is generally a political issue; because of this, it often has a negative connotation. This article tackles the moral issues surrounding minimum wage; it identifies two different kinds of morality. The first, which he calls "magnanimous morality," regards families and small groups within which individuals have "personal concern and familiarity with each other." The other type, referred to as "mundane morality," is within large groups where individuals have "little knowledge and personal concern" for one another. In this article, author Lee Dwight says: 

But the strong emotional appeal of magnanimous morality creates temptations to apply it to large-number situations, such as markets, where it does more harm than good by hampering the cooperation between large numbers of strangers that cannot be achieved without reliance on mundane morality.

Dwight argues that people attempt to apply the first morality, relating to small groups, to large groups. On principle, this does not work. "Magnanimous morality" will not work in big groups because its primary idea is personal interactions with one another; this is often impossible in small groups. Markets are examples of large groups in which "magnanimous morality" does not work. The minimum wage affects a lot of people, whether it is directly or indirectly. It is important to take into account the morality behind it. People want to know that their work is valued. When people are paid lower wages, it sends a message that the employer doesn't value his or her work as much (Dwight). 

The debate on minimum wage is currently in progress in the country. With President Obama's proposal of a $15 dollar federal minimum wage, many states are starting to take action and decide if they should raise their minimum wages. One example of a debate surrounding minimum wage is currently happening in Pennsylvania. Tom Wolf, Democratic Governor of Pennsylvania, raised the minimum wage in his state to $10.15. This was put in action by an executive order and applies to "state government employees and workers on jobs contracted by the state." He did this through an executive order was because he was dissatisfied with how slowly the state legislature had been moving toward this change. This wage level corresponds to President Obama's executive order that "required federal contractors to pay their workers at least $10.10 an hour." Pennsylvanian lawmakers with Republican views are not pleased with this change. Because it was an executive order, they are unhappy that Wolf acted alone and believe it is bound to "drive up costs for employers" (Levy).  

Currently, there is a set federal minimum wage across the country. This is the lowest amount a person could be paid by the hour, no matter where they live in the United States. While President Obama has proposed a $15 an hour federal minimum wage, it remains at $7.25. States and cities may chose to have any minimum wage they want, as long as it is not below $7.25 ("Questions"). It is important to have a minimum wage to keep businesses in check and insure that workers are being paid fair wages. However, the minimum wage should be regionalized because a minimum wage that works in an area like California may not work in rural Vermont. A state or citywide minimum wage allows for the market to work itself out, instead of forcing a set wage on the whole country (Worstall). Enforcing the same wage across the country may be economically harmful in places where the minimum wage should be lower. 

Upon first look at the minimum wage, it seems like a higher minimum wage would help the middle and lower classes. On the surface, this appears to be a simple solution: if minimum wage workers aren't earning a wage that they are able to live off of, raise their wages. This view, however, does acknowlege many different factors that people must take into account before making this decision. 

Looking deeper into this topic, the long-term effects of a higher minimum wage become apparent. In his article "Seattle's Coming $15 Minimum Wage," reporter Clinton Alexander interviews small business owners to get their thoughts on what a higher minimum wage would do to their companies and what kinds of changes they might have to make as a result. Businessman Walter McLaughlin has spent nearly the last 30 years in Small Business Administration. As a tribute to his success, he was awarded the Washington State Financial Services Champion award in 2005. Using his own experiences and insight, he states that he believes the increase in wages will lead to more inflation and unemployment as small businesses struggle to keep their costs low. He refers to an economic theory called "zero sum gain" meaning "an increase is offset by a loss of the same amount." The irony of this situation is that an increase in the minimum wage will harm the people it was intended to help (Alexander).

McLaughlin is not the only small business owner with a negative view on an increased minimum wage. His opinion seems to be common among small business owners across the board, including Joe Salvatore of The Recycling Depot. Salvatore has spoken to many small businesses in the Seattle area and they are all in agreement. He points out that most small businesses do not have large profit margins, unlike large corporations, that would allow them to "absorb costs" when they have to pay their workers higher wages. Bobby Denovski, with Padrino's Pizza and Pasta, says that with this increase in wages, he believes his company will more than likely go out of business. He says that the only way he can attempt to keep his business afloat is to raise prices, which he worries will drive customers away. This increase in minimum wage will cause these small businesses to shut down, affecting not only the small business owners, but putting all their employees out of work (Alexander). 

Seattle is not the only city or state pushing toward a higher minimum wage. The Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, is pushing for a higher minimum wage. He has made a proposal for a statewide minimum wage of $10.50 an hour to be implemented by the end of the year and increase to $15 an hour in the next few years. This would be the highest statewide minimum wage to date. The author of the article continues on to interview a low-wage earner and mother of two, Leoni Miller. She explains that she has worked a full time job her whole life and still struggles to make ends meet. She feels like the work she does is worth more than what she is getting paid. Next in the article, small business owners are interviewed about what would happen to their businesses if the minimum wage were raised in New York. Generally, most business owners said that, with this increase in wages, they would be forced to raise prices, cut hours, and lay off employees. One business owner says his company will surely go out of business if the minimum wage is raised to $15 an hour, as 70% of his workers earn minimum wage (Botero). There are harsh realities that come with raising the minimum wage. While it might help people like Leoni Miller at first, if she is working for a small business or a business that cannot absorb the costs of these higher wages, eventually, the business she worked for might close and she and all the other employees would be out of work.

Nick Hanauer, businessman and plutocrat, is a strong advocate for a $15 federal minimum wage. He gave a TED Talk entitled "Beware, fellow plutocrats, the pitchforks are coming." Hanauer explains that he believes people are going to get angry at the top 1% of the wealthiest people in the country as the idea of "trickle-down economics" fails. He believes that the President's proposed $15 minimum wage is the solution to this issue. This way, money goes straight to the middle class instead of having to "trickle-down" from the rich. He calls upon Seattle as an example of a city that has adopted a $15 per hour wage and continued to prosper (Hanauer). What Hanauer has failed to take into account is the vast difference in the cost of living across the country. While that high of a wage might work in Seattle, a prosperous, economic hub, may not work in another state and another, perhaps rural, city. Therefore, a federal minimum wage of $15 across the board in the United States is not beneficial. What works in one city or state in the country, may not work in different city or state.

While abolishing the federal minimum wage might beneficial, this would be a drastic change. There are alternatives that can be put in place, at least until the United States is ready to take that step. In his article, "Should Congress Increase The Federal Minimum Wage And Index It To Inflation?" Lew Prince explains the importance of "indexing the federal minimum wage" with the cost of living. This means that as the cost of living increases, the federal minimum wage will automatically be raised. His company, founded in 1979, has always valued its workers and paid above minimum wage to keep workers motivated (Prince).  This would be a good bridge from where the country is now to getting the federal minimum wage abolished completely and allowing state and citywide minimum wages to be the norm. This could be the next step to ensure people are getting paid appropriate wages in accordance with inflation and cost of living.

Eliminating the federal minimum wage and allowing states and cities to have more control over their minimum wages would be a big change for the United States. Before eliminating the federal minimum wage completely, it is important that we find alternative solutions to the problems a higher minimum wage seeks to solve. In his scholarly article, "Reducing Poverty Via Minimum Wages, Alternatives," author David Neumark acknowledges that in order to decrease poverty levels, the first thing people think of is increasing the minimum wage. He also, however, points out that while this may seem like a good solution, this fix is aimed toward "individual workers with low wages," as opposed to "families with low incomes." There are other ways to decrease poverty in the United States; Neumark offers alternate solutions and policies like the earned income tax credit (Neumark). Supporters on all sides of the argument have the same goal: to assist people who live do not earn a livable wage in rising out of poverty. The issue that varies from person to person is how the country should go about reaching this goal. The ideas Neumark suggests are good alternatives to raising the minimum wage, with the same goal in mind and with fewer repercussions that might come with the implementation of a higher federal minimum wage.

Many cities and states already have minimum wages tailored to their specific regions. As mentioned previously, Seattle is an example of a city that has adopted the minimum wage (Drier). The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 and currently there are nineteen states that have a minimum wage higher than that. Ten states have their minimum wage set to increase with inflation. The cities of New York and Los Angeles have created laws about the minimum wage adapted to their cities. Even if New York and Los Angeles adopt a $15 minimum wage, it may be appropriate because it is relative to their cities' economies (Dreier). States and cities should take a more active approach and set their own minimum wage instead of adopting the federal minimum wage. This will ensure that the wages fit the cities in which they are implemented according to the cost of living in that city.  

Many people in the economic field support the abolition of a federal minimum wage. In his article, "Policy Analysis No. 107: The Negative Effects of Minimum Wage Laws," Mark Wilson discusses the negative aspects of the minimum wage laws. He believes that enforcing a federal minimum wage hurts the group of Americans it is intended to aid. An increase in the minimum wage will cause lay offs, fewer job opportunities, and a raise in prices of consumer goods. This study provides economic research that counters the idea that raising the minimum wage will benefit the economy (Wilson). Tim Worstall, journalist for the New York Times, also supports the abolition of the federal minimum wage. He believes this will allow for the market to settle itself, instead of forcing a flat wage across the country. With so many varying jobs and skills, it seems impractical to give all the different levels the same wage (Worstall). 

Many people are affected by minimum wage, whether they earn it or someone they know earns it. I had a job in high school that paid the federal minimum wage of $7.25. While I would have loved to be have been paid $15 an hour, in reality, the work I was doing was not worth $15 an hour. Because of the wide variety in levels of education and skill, to put a specific dollar amount on them across the entire country is not constructive. Minimum wage can also decrease a person's motivation to work harder and move up in his or her job. If a person could get paid $15 an hour at any job, it calls into question would they want to work harder, move up the ladder, and get an education if he or she could just stay at their job earning decent wages. High school students might choose not go to college if they are already earning high wages. 

While a federally mandated minimum wage sounds beneficial, it ends up doing more harm than good. There are many economic repercussions when a wage that is too high is implemented in an area that can't support that level of wage. These consequences include loss in jobs, an increase in prices, and an increase in inflation. In reality, the federal minimum wage tends to harm the people it is meant to help. There are many different regions of the U.S. with varying economic statuses; it is unfair to give all of these regions one set minimum wage. The most advantageous option is to allow states and cities to mandate their own minimum wages according to each region's needs, economies and job market.

