Posted on 01/26/2007 10:55:07 AM PST by celejrm313
DALLAS (Reuters) - Proposed increases in the U.S. minimum wage would likely result in pay raises for around 2 million black workers, according to a study released this week by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives earlier this month approved legislation to increase the minimum wage over two years to $7.25 per hour from $5.15 per hour -- which would be its first hike in a decade.
But Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked the bill, demanding it also include small business tax relief. The Senate was set to debate the bill again on Friday with passage of a wage hike-tax break measure expected next week. The Senate and House would then have to negotiate a final version.
"Our analysis shows that this increase in the minimum wage would have a significant positive impact on African American families and communities," said Ralph Everett, president and CEO of the Joint Center, a Washington-based think tank.
"African Americans are more likely to live in states that either have no minimum wage or have minimums equal to the federal rate, and so they would certainly benefit from a new law raising the floor," he said.
The report estimates the following numbers based on the proposed staggered increases up to 2009:
2007 - 189,000 black workers benefit when minimum wage rises to $5.85 an hour.
2008 - An additional 419,000 benefit when it goes to $6.55 an hour.
2009 - 753,000 more benefit when it climbs to $7.25 an hour.
"Wages for many low-income workers are just above the current federal minimum wage but below $7.25 and that is why the numbers get larger as you go along," Dr. Margaret Simms, an economist at the Joint Center, told Reuters by phone.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
DEciphering the code: If you're against the minimum wage hike, you're a racist.
>>>I know there are some people out there that are trying to raise a family on minimum wage, but the majority of minimum wage earners are not heads of household, they are under 21 and living with someone else. Furthermore, minimum wage is entry level, if you're working in that position for more than 6 months, you really need to evaluate yourself.<<<
Maybe I'm living in lala land out here in Kansas, but my nephew just got his first job last September. He quit school (I was so pissed), so no diploma or job experience. They started him out at 10.13 and hour and within two weeks had raised that to 10.55. Even my niece, who also quit, never had to work for minimum wage and she worked fast food. She always got at least a dollar over. Is this the norm or were they just lucky?
How come no one ever mentions that raising the minimum wage also raises tax revenues? How about they raise the minimum wage, and simultaneously raise the tax brackets?
Not if they can help it.
Nobody will say it, but many are thinking it:
"Maybe for $7.25 I can get a young white guy, someone who looks decent and talks nice."
Won't help anyone,,,watch for every thing to go up in price about the same percentage...and people who work for below the min. wage will really be hit hard..
Go take an economics class...pronto
As an added bonus, deportation would lessen the financial load on our schools, city services, hospitals and other "free" goods and services that the illegals now enjoy at the taxpayer's expense.
No, thats the norm -> market conditions determining the wages, what a concept. They feel they have to pay them that to keep them around.
Here in post-K New Orleans with its huge unskilled labor shortage, starting salary at burger king is about $9.50 an hour plus a signing bonus worth a few hundred bucks.
No, it actually hurts everyone (except those who benefit from inflation). The worst hurt goes to the very lowest on the totem pole; they're SOL.
If the reasoning in this article were accurate it would help everyone who earned minimum wage regardless of color.
However, this article is racist written by stooges under the boot of union liberals. The victims will be poor, very-low skilled individuals who are willing to work but will now not find it because their human capital is priced between the old and the new minimum wages. There are a huge number of young black males in this group.
For these authors to never once mention unemployment consequences is sheer nonsense.
The ones I see this hurting the most are the borderline retarded that work for Goodwill etc.
They get a feel good paycheck for a few hours of unproductive labor.
The money they get is a donation and this will cost them jobs.
A lot of teenagers get their first jobs at minimum wage. Once they prove they can work, they get raises. Taking the bottom rung off the ladder for willing young workers with no skills is just demonic.
It still won't help when ILLEGALS are paid far below the minimum and the democrats refuse to vote on tougher fine enforcement of employers who use them. It will cause employers to look to hire ILLEGALS instead.
Thanks for the tip. The first thing I saw was the number of workers making the current minimum of $5.15 per hour.
570,000
True?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.