On the $15 Minimum Wage Debate, From a Pragmatic Perspective

Since the minimum wage debate is being fired up again, I'm going to weigh in. I still can't believe people think $15/hr is some sort of reward for "working hard".  It's a decent wage if you're single and very frugal, but $15/hr doesn't go very far these days, especially if you have a family
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If you're already making $15 or more an hour, why does it affect you if someone else doing a different job makes the same or even more if benefits are factored into the equation? They're not taking anything from you or your accomplishments. You should be glad people are pushing for being paid more, because it means less people relying on social services and it means more money going into the economy, which makes things better for everyone.

What you're also forgetting is that more people are paying taxes at $15 an hour, which means more revenue for municipal and state services. At $7.25-$10 hourly rates, very few people are making enough to pay taxes and are usually exempt as a result, which means sharply reduced tax revenue coming in.

Were the minimum wage actually indexed to inflation, $15 an hour would still be lower than where the wage should theoretically be set, which is $22.50 an hour at our current cost of living and inflation rates. At some point, politicians and businesses forgot why the minimum wage exists, which was to allow people to be able to cover their expenses at a 40 hour workweek.

I see the backlash against raising the minimum wage as being the result of a culture where earning money is seen as a zero-sum game and being wealthy as the ultimate goal. I also find it funny how the people that want to argue against raising the minimum wage are the least informed on how the increase benefits everyone in the long-term, all for the desire to have someone to look down upon.

If we're all making $15 an hour, then that means that we're taking the steps to be better off as a country and as a society. Whether people will sit up and realize that will take a long time, and both politicians and businesses will keep fighting it, until more people realize it's in their best interest to earn more. Earning a $15 minimum wage will not demotivate people from earning more money, especially those with families, but it will give them a foundation to earn more if they want or need to.

A solid foundation to start from with a $15 minimum wage will make all the difference between struggling from check to check or being able to focus on long-term goals, and we really need more people to be able to focus on long-term goals, for the sake of the country and the economy.