In the state of Arizona employers must pay people who work hourly at least $8.05 an hour, which is already higher than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 for employee's paid hourly. Tomas Robles is one of the people in Arizona now fighting for a $12 minimum wage, he has an online petition and claims he has about half the signatures needed to be able to get the issue on a ballot. His campaign is called LUCHA or Living United for Change in Arizona and since 2013 he has been rallying and getting people to fight for a wage increase.
Small businesses in Arizona may
fear that such a high wage would make them go out of business from trying to
keep up with the legal pay which would be up to $3 dollars more for every
employee every hour. Stephanie said “I deeply believe that as an entrepreneur
and as a human being that people should be treated with respect and dignity,”.
She owns a coffee shop and claims that her employees already make at least $12
an hour.
“Arizona’s current $8.05 minimum
wage translates to $16,744 a year. For a single person, the federal government
considers anything below $11,880 a year to be living in poverty. That figure is
$16,020 for a family of two and $20,160 for a family of three.” The current
wage is enough that someone wouldn’t be considered to be living in poverty but
often one person is providing for more than just themselves and it’s very easy
for the current minimum wage of $8.05 to not be enough for a family.
"Ballot Fight Probable over Higher Arizona Minimum Wage." Arizona Daily Star. Howard Fischer Capitol Media Services, n.d. Web. 17 June 2016.
"Fight for Fifteen." Living United for Change in Arizona. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 June 2016.
I don't think that making $8.05 is enough to support a family. It's probably barely enough to cover the expenses of one person. I think a higher pay would be nice but I also believe that people should be paid off of their skills. If you're working for a company where it doesn't require much skill then I don't think $12 an hour is very reasonable. There are many different companies with competitive pay and also getting a degree can help with getting a better paying job. I think it's just really the persons choice on what they choose to do. Most companies that offer lower pay is because their ideal employee is young and doesn't require to be paid much more. I think that also plays a huge role in the fact that they don't want to offer more pay.
ReplyDelete- Salina Rose Tejeda
DeleteJacob Sharp
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This is a very interesting human rights issue as it appeals to all of the rhetorical elements and creates a battleground on all of them as well. Emotionally, employees want to have more money because they feel their work is worth more than "minimum," while owners and bosses think they should deserve their money for being higher ranked. Logically some might think that people in a low income should be compensated, while others believe that money comes to those who invest in themselves with an education. Ethically, the employees think that they deserve to be taken care of if they work and pay taxes on an honest living. The debate will never be quieted, but the truth is, raising a minimum wage will not solve anything. It will only make it even more complicated for low skilled individuals to find an income or a job. Paying people 15 dollars an hour Is not our answer
-Jacob Sharp
Raising the minimum wage is a double edged sword. Many people argue that people with no degree will be making the same amount as somebody just entering the workforce after earning the degree. Also, when wages are raised the cost to make products or provide services increases, therefore that means that the cost will be passed on to the consumer. People deserve to make a decent living there is not doubt about that, but raising the wages may not solve that issue. It may cause a bigger issue because now it will force the entire workforce to restructure itself because now somebody who has spent the last 4 years in school will be making the same as somebody who just finished high school. I think small business owners will be affected the most as they may not be able to afford an expensive workforce and compete with bigger companies at the same time. I believe that about 89 percent of businesses in this country are composed of small businesses.The fact that this country is composed mainly of small businesses it may create an issue for our economy if they start going out of business.
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Bailee Tribble
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Blog Response
6/23/16
I think every state in the United States should raise their minimum wage based on taxes rather than they way they do it which is basically vice versa. The state of Arizona should raise their wages at least a dollar or two so people don't have to fear not being able to provide for their families or themselves. My household has a family of 4 and we barely slide by with my dad's wage, which is well over the minimum wage and like you said, they expect people of families of two to live off of $16,000 a year. It is ridiculous.