Raul Labrador, a representative from the state of Idaho has this to say on raising the minimum wage. "My mom worked at McDonald's, and she decided she wanted to make more money, so she got into the management program at McDonald's. And that's how you move up the chain. It's not by demanding that minimum wage is raised; it's by actually acquiring the skills. That's the way that people get ahead in life" (Americans for America, 2013, para. 02). This quote represents what is wrong with those who want the minimum wage raised. Advocates for enhanced minimum wages, would like to see the minimum wage aligned with the starting pay for those with college degrees, advances skills, and advanced training. If people want higher wages, they should get higher levels of training, levels of skill, and forms of education. These same individuals want to attain a quality of life that simply does not coincide with minimum wage jobs. If people do not want minimum wages, then do not maintain minimum skills or education. Mandatorily increasing minimum wage does not benefit the employee, the employer, or the economy.
Raising the minimum wage would result in increased wages and decreased jobs. In 1938, the first federal minimum wage mandate was enacted. This was by federal law, what each state was required as a minimum to pay any employee as a wage, regardless of the cost of living associated with that area. This law was signed by President Franklin Roosevelt. When enacted under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the federal minimum wage was set at twenty-five cents an hour. Since then there have been 22 increases to that twenty-five cents, bringing it to the current federal minimum rate of $7.25, as put in place in 2009. This is an overall increase of 85%, however, many states are above the federal minimum standard (Wilson, 2012).
Since the early days of an implemented minimum wage, job loss has occurred. As employers are forced to increase the amount of wages paid to employees, there has to be a shift of money within the company.