The Minimum Wage Paradox

For many years people have been stating that the minimum wage needs to increase. I agree people deserve to make a fair wage, but what is a fair wage?

Let’s say you go to college to become a school teacher. You have studied hard for 4 years and graduated with your degree. You know first time teachers don’t make a lot, but it’s a foot in the door in hopes of a bright future and you accept a job for $32,000 at a school you wanted.

At the same time, a high school sophomore works at the movie theater tearing apart tickets and makes $15 an hour. If that student worked full time, it would come to $31,200.

No degree. No nighttime stress. Just a good time making money to pay for gas money.

Would that be fair?

The minimum wage was established under FDR with the Fair Labor Standards Act. This act was created to help protect workers with a 40 hour work week, overtime pay, and keep children out of hard work environments. Many people during this time didn’t have an education so they had to endure the bare minimum. So this law was created to protect them.

None of my grandparents graduated high school and some didn’t get out of elementary before they had to start working. FLSA was to help them. It was to protect those that needed protecting from a ruthless society that would take advantage of the less fortunate.

But today, the majority of the United States has a high school education. They have opportunities to attend college, learn a trade, join the military or join the work force. We have means of showing when a business isn’t treating their employees proper. There are more opportunities now than there were in 1938.

Also, in 1938 the economy was in shambles. The Great Depression happened and the wealthiest one percent who ran the businesses were probably trying to recoup what they had lost. So paying their workforce wasn’t a priority. There was corruption in many industries where kids were forced to work like grown men, putting themselves in danger. But they had to or they wouldn’t be able to eat. So they risked their lives to take care of themselves.

Today, if you work somewhere and they pay you the minimum wage, hopefully you work hard and show the owner you deserve a raise. After a year and an annual evaluation, you can see if the employer will treat you right. Well done, here is your raise. Or treat you like no one, well done, keep working.

You have a decision to make. Keep working there knowing you have no future or get a job with your new skill sets in hopes of making more.

If I was working for someone who didn’t respect me enough to pay me a fair wage now, why would I still work for them? If the government increased the minimum wage and that was the only reason I got a raise, what would my attitude be?

It would be bad. I wouldn’t respect my employer. I would probably bad mouth them. I wouldn’t care about my employer’s business because my employer didn’t care about me.

And that is just sad.

In some cities jobs may be hard to find where they pay minimum way or a little above, but in the majority of cities there are other places. There is also another restaurant. There is always another shopping center. There is always another factory. There is always another place to apply.

I am always excited when I hear from my younger guys I have mentored when they got a raise at their part-time job and they are beaming proud of that accomplishment. I congratulate them and let them bask in their joy.

But I don’t want them to settle for that high school job for the rest of their life. There is nothing wrong with that job, but I see potential in them to do much, much more.

And sadly, I see so many people settling because they don’t believe they have the knowledge, the will power, the connections, the gumption to better themselves.

Bettering yourself isn’t easy. If it was easy, then you wouldn’t get any better.

It’s like working out. If you do something you are not used to, you may be sore tomorrow. But that soreness is good because it is using new muscles in a new way. It’s making you better.

Sadly many in the United States has grown accustomed to getting what we want, when we want it, without doing anything to get it. It’s just given to us. Freedom. Rights. Food. Shelter. Medical.

But I’m always saddened when I see people living at the minimum because there is something so much better than that. I wonder if God is saddened by the bare minimum. He has given us knowledge to pursue our dreams and we do nothing. He has given us means to accomplish the unthinkable and we do nothing. He has given us resources to change the world and yet we do nothing.

I’m not for free handouts because there is always someone who will take advantage of a good thing and mess it up for the rest of us.

I’m more hands on. If you don’t feel like you can make a change, talk to me and I will encourage you. If you don’t think you have what it takes, talk to me and I will show you I’m nothing special either. If you don’t believe in yourself, talk to me and I will tell you that you can do anything.

Should we have a minimum wage? Yes.

Should we be living to raise the minimum wage? No.

We should be living to raise our own worth without someone telling someone else to raise it.

Some may read this and think I am cold, but I am the complete opposite. If you have a dream to better yourself, I will cheer you on when no one else will. I’m here to say don’t settle for the minimum wage…rise above it.

You can do it.

Peace

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