Minimum Wage - 6018 Words

History of the Minimum Wage  · 1938 -- The minimum wage was first enacted into law as part of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938. The original minimum wage applied to workers engaged in interstate commerce and the production of goods for interstate commerce. In 1938, this applied to roughly 11.0 million workers out of a total of 54.9 million workers. The minimum wage was set at $0.25 per hour.  · 1961 -- Amendments to the minimum wage law extend coverage primarily to employees in large retail and service trades as well as local transit, construction, and gasoline service station employees.  · 1966 -- Amendments to the minimum wage law extend coverage to state and local government employees of hospitals, nursing homes, and†¦show more content†¦Many economists believe that the minimum wage raises the wages of middle-class teens while doing little to help the working poor get out of poverty. Edward Gramlich (1976) found that any income gains among teenagers resulting from the minimum wage are about evenly split between high-income and low-income families. The vast majority of minimum wage workers are not the primary wage earner in a poor family; Richard Burkhauser and T. Aldrich Finegan (1989) estimated that in the mid-1980s only 7 percent of low-wage workers were heads of families living in poverty. Burkhauser, Kenneth Couch and David Wittenberg (1996) found that almost 40 percent of all workers directly affected by the minimum wage increases in 1990 and 1991 were from families in the top half of the income distribution, with 4 percent of affected workers in t he top decile. The minimum wage does have the potential to raise the incomes of some poor households, particularly those headed by women. About 40 percent of poor adults worked in 1994, and low-wage workers contribute about one-half of household earnings. Over one-fourth of all workers in the lowest family income decile were affected by the 1990 and 1991 federal minimum wage increases, according to Burkhauser, Couch and Wittenberg. Because women tend to have lower earnings than men, working women are more likely to be in poverty. In 1987, the earnings of nearly 18 percent of working female householdShow MoreRelatedMinimum Wage And The Wage916 Words   |  4 PagesEliminate the Minimum Wage Darity Has described minimum wage as: â€Å"Minimum-wage legislation has been to improve the terms of employment of the least-fortunate wage earners.† (Darity) Since the beginning of minimum wage laws in 1270 France the intentions of minimum wage legislation has been good. The idea is that a worker is worth a certain amount regardless of the work they are able to do. One can see how this could create inefficiencies in an economy. The law was meant to help poor families.Read MoreMinimum Wage And The Wage Essay1208 Words   |  5 Pages Minimum wage requires paying every employee a specific wage regardless of the employee productivity. It is the responsibility of the government to set the minimum wage. To understand this, a biology analogy can be used: some animals are stronger compared to others. In economic perspective, some people are relatively unable to deliver compared to others. Among them include, disabled, unskilled, and the youth. Due to their low productivity, th ey are entitled lower wages corresponding to their effortsRead MoreMinimum Wage And The Wage Essay1728 Words   |  7 PagesRoyer Political Science 120 7 November 2016 Increase Minimum Wage Introduction The United States’ minimum wage has been a concerning issue amongst the low wage earners because of the amount they earn is not enough for them to live on their own. Therefore causing the citizens who earn minimum wage to have an impossible time finding a place to stay and expenses for daily survival. Increasing the minimum wage will solve the issues that the minimum wage earners make, thus increasing the chances of survivalRead MoreThe Wage Is The Minimum Wage1098 Words   |  5 PagesEnglish 9 6/5/16 â€Å"The minimum wage is the minimum hourly wage an employer can pay an employee for work. Currently, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour (part of the Fair Labor Standards Act) and some states and cities have raised their minimum wage even higher than that.† minimum wage was first introduced during the great depression in 1930s. Before it was introduced thousands of people were forced to work in horrible conditions for pennies a week. Early attempts on minimum wage was ruled unconstitutionalRead MoreMinimum Wage And The Wage1437 Words   |  6 Pages Minimum wage was established on October 24, 1938 after President Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act. (Grossman) Minimum wage was set to allow working class citizens an opportunity to work a reasonable amount of hours for pay that would enable individuals to maintain a minimal quality life. In today’s economics minimum wage is used as a price control or price floor that the government enforces. A price floor is a minimum price for a product or service above the market’s equilibrium priceRead MoreMinimum Wage And The Wage1269 Words   |  6 PagesMinimum Wage There are a lot of people around the world who struggle with money and a satisfactory way of life. Whether they be in the United States or across the globe, there is a standard minimum wage set for the working class of their country. In the Unites States, there is a federal minimum wage of seven dollars and twenty five cents per hour worked. Almost every state has another set minimum wage, which typically is a little higher than the federal minimum wage, but it cannot be lower thanRead MoreThe Wage Of The Minimum Wage871 Words   |  4 PagesWith the presidential elections right around the corner policy on minimum wage has come up for debate once again. William Hoar from The New American argues in his article â€Å"Misguided minimum wage mandate† that raising the minimum wage will only result in loss of jobs. According to the editorial board at USA Today, â€Å" inflation adjusted income of the top 1 percent has grown by 58 percent and the remaining 99 percent has only gr own by 6.4 percent†. They then state that a raise to 15 dollars an hour onlyRead MoreMinimum Wage863 Words   |  4 PagesMinimum wage is a controversial topic because everybody wants more. People want more money and some think that just increasing minimum wage can increase more money that they get. However, this is far from the truth as sometimes employers can’t pay their employers more than minimum wage. Not to mention that if the minimum wage goes up so does the price of everything else in order to adjust for the new price. So essentially increasing the wage majorly does nothing except maybe lower the value of yourRead MoreMinimum Wage and Its Implications763 Words   |  3 PagesMinimum wage affects everyone. The current minimum wage is at $7.25 and President Obama announced that he wished to see a change in the minimum wage, he wants to raise the hourly wage to $10.10. A rise in the income of those who are employed will also raise the cost of hiring unskilled lab or and can potentially reduce the number of people hired by businesses. Also, if minimum wage is raised then the price of the products that the companies are making might increase which will continue the cycle ofRead MoreMinimum Wage And The Wage1639 Words   |  7 PagesMinimum wage is one of the many microeconomic policies that serve to correct imbalance in the economy. It is defined as the lowest amount of remuneration required of an employer to pay his employees during a given period of work. There exist different laws in different states that can fix the minimum wage policy. A current economic issue is minimum wage, or specifically, its pertinence to social inequality. Many sectors of society would be affected by changes in this policy. Minimum wage relies on

The Scientific Revolution Of The Great Works By...

In 1543 the publication of three great works by Copernicus, Vesalius, and Archimedes sparked the Scientific Revolution. The modern day scientists of this era began to criticize the Aristotelian and Medieval Cosmological views of the world as a result of further experimentation. Furthermore, the Copernican heliocentric model of the universe created an uproar among scientists and theologians alike. Most scientists were loyal to Aristotle’s cosmos and were unwilling to accept the new world view, while many religious advocates argued that the new world view was contrary to the teachings of the Bible. A prominent Copernican scientist, Galileo Galilei, lived his entire life within the context of the Scientific Revolution. In his Letter to the Grand Duchess Christina Galileo explains the way he feels the Bible relates to science, arguing that both nature and Scripture are God’s creation and thus authoritative in their own right. As a Copernican, Galileo believes in a heliocent ric model of the universe – that is, that the sun is â€Å"situated motionless in the center†¦while the earth rotates on its axis and revolves around the sun† (663, 12-16). He writes that the idea is not his own, and his critics â€Å"pretend not to know that its author†¦was Nicholas Copernicus.† (664, 4-8). Furthermore, his critics call out his propositions as contrary to the Bible and heretical. Galileo explains that these individuals attempt to use Bible passages to disprove the heliocentric cosmology, but to no

American Revolution or Evolution Free Essays

Saroosh . H. Khan American Evolution or Revolution? The theme has been subject to excessive discussion over the course of more than two centuries encompassing the existence of the United States. We will write a custom essay sample on American Revolution or Evolution or any similar topic only for you Order Now Although it has been taught for as long in our schools and classrooms and all other educational institutions that the year 1776 Anno Domini marks the year of American Revolution, but amidst historians and intellectuals the dilemma to whether to call it a revolution or an evolution has never been out of question. Reader! Doesn’t it enthrall one that a single word could bifurcate scholars and create factions amongst the erudite. ?Por que (why? ) there must be a reason and there is! The answer is simple yet rational: Perspective. Albert Einstein, (the famous physicist) most remembered by his theory of relativity, concluded that distance and time were not absolute. History resides in the same niche. It is more than a chronological account of past events of a period or a livelihood or development of a people, an institution, or a place. But what it is not is absolute. It is always left upon interpretation, scrutiny, analysis, probing and pondering. The perception or perspective gained through such rigorous processes is also subject to the base of a historian. It is very uncommon to find historians sharing their bases of initial learning and therefore the effect of their own era, age, surroundings and upbringing must also be taken account of. A revolution, defined by Encyclopedia Britannica is: a major, sudden, and hence typically a violent alteration in government and in related associations and structures. On the other hand Oxford dictionary defines an evolution as: the gradual development of something, especially from a simple to a more complex form. Let us decide upon the usage of the word Revolution, which one can venture out to say, could be dated from the year 1775 with its ignition being the battle of Lexington and Concord and culmination being the ratification of the constitution of the States in 1782. Seemingly easy doesn’t it? It doesn’t really respond to how fundamentally did the thoughts, ideals, ideology and mindset of a 2. 5 million inhabitants change and led to he chain of events that became known as the American Revolution. What I believe is that no people in the course of history have ever rebelled against a certain state, condition or ideology without a buildup of grievances, resentment or a gradual shift of attitude towards accepting a better socio-dogma. Let’s go back to the early 17th century when immigrations began to take place into the New Wo rld. Herds of folks comprising of German, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Jewish descent and not to mention the French Huguenots, began pouring into the lands in order to escape from the fetters of the Old World. They did not have any more an appetite for its rituals, its doctrines, its curbing of civil liberties, and mostly the cost of living in it. One can even say at this particular time, that they were revolting as a denouement of the evolution of the aforementioned causes. So it would be appropriate to say that a 17th century Europe was in revolution. Let’s go further with this theory and say that the immigrants reaching the New World were revolutionaries. Almost 150 years of Pax Americana (used strictly in context with the time period and not according to current usage) so to say was enjoyed by the colonists. During this time, some changes irrevocably did take place. This is evident from the fact that the language that the majority of the immigrants originally spoke had evolved into a different dialect. So from this we can also entrust upon the belief that alongside linguistics political and socio-economic changes did also take place. A political change that actually began with the migrations was the rise of a political ideology known as Republicanism. Technically ruled by Great Britain or more accurately looked over, the colonies practiced the policy through their town halls and city councils. Very famous examples of such republican instruments were the Virginia House of Burgesses and the Massachusetts Assembly. These were regulated by either representative or direct democracy. The symbol of democracy at the time was looked upon as the House of Commons in England, however it did seem a bit more than contradicting to have the Buckingham Palace towering high in the very country. The colonists did give their allegiances to the monarch but because of the fact that it was kind of conditional. Although they did not realize it nor was it formally declared but they remained docile because they were never tampered by British legislations. They had during this time, created their own principles, created their own system of jurisprudence, law, justice, methods of trade, commerce, education, agriculture etc. When after the French and Indian war, the British began actively participating in the earlier enumerated colonial components of society; it would’ve obviously been not received glad handedly by the Colonists as it did not. Let’s now examine the economic evolution that took place to ensure America’s Independence. The 150 year old period was in terms of trade and commerce coined as a period of salutary neglect. For the colonists it brought economic prosperity and industrialization. For the British it was shooting themselves in the foot. Intentional lax in order to show the appreciation for economic freedom while regulating the policy of mercantilism. Does it make any sense? One would question Robert Walpole’s sanity between all of this; however he is not our subject of concern. What you shall so sow so shall you reap; a very old and passed around saying isn’t it? But it does make sense in the context. The British for a very long period of time followed the policy and the colonist enjoyed its benefits. Smuggling was nothing out of the blue, very common. Other European nations also benefitted from it, the Colonial agriculture products such as hay, wheat, barley, maize and cotton were valued highly in foreign markets. When the British annoyed at Colonial stubbornness to pay taxes, passed the writs of assistance; there was an outrage. There had to be one, like it did, smuggling was not put up with anymore and a flow of revenue generation created as a result of foreign trade stagnated. How were the merchants to run their businesses without the freedom of trading being allowed to them as it had always been? Hence there was an outcry by the merchants who went bankrupt as a result of such legislation. Ah! One cannot expect the theme to be talked about without the mentioning of taxes somewhere or another. The country was not at all familiar with taxes; once again it is necessary to mention that when we talk about being not being tampered for almost 150 years it is meant more than it sounds. Citizens in Britain were obliged to pay taxes, however their brethren in the New World were not. I do at times believe that absolute freedom corrupts absolutely, there should be some harnesses or bridles put on in order to let ivility root in or in this case for rule to sustain. When suddenly exposed to direct taxes such as Stamp Act and Sugar Acts why would it not cause havoc with in the colonists? It would lead to acrimony towards the crown like it did, it would lead to mass protests like it did and would lead to severing of ties like it did. In the beginning I wrote about how a historical event is su bject to independent interpretation. How historians may or may not agree on something because of the different elements molding the shape of the basis for their knowledge. I must confess that it is not arbitrary and applies to myself as it does to any other individual. I believe that evolution without revolution is lame and revolution without evolution blind, very similar to what Einstein said about religion and science. One thing is for certain though, nothing is by nature revolutionary. There has to be friction to beget fire. During the 150 year period evolutionary changes in political beliefs, social policies and economic mechanisms did take place otherwise the colonists would’ve never armed themselves to teeth and hoisted the flag of revolution. How to cite American Revolution or Evolution, Papers

Colonialism in an Outpost of Progress free essay sample

â€Å"An Outpost of Progress† is a story of irony and colonialism in Africa in the nineteenth century, written by Joseph Conrad. In this Story two European men, named Kayerts and Carlier, are deployed to a trading outpost in a remote part of the African jungle. They take part ivory trading in hopes of making themselves and the company they work for wealthier. Trading outposts in the late nineteenth century were a trademark for colonialist efforts in foreign lands. Colonialism is the establishment, exploitation, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory (Wikipedia). During the nineteenth century Africa had to deal with a lot of pressure from European imperialists. These pressures included diplomatic pressures, military invasions, and eventual colonization. By the early twentieth century, the majority of Africa had been colonized by European powers. Although heavily colonized already, Africa, the â€Å"vast and dark country† (Conrad Page 2) represented a large territory that had not been taken advantage of completely for its land and natural resources. England along with many other colonialist powers made many attempts at Africa in an attempt to continue their colonialist dominance. â€Å"It is inherent in a great colonial and commercial empire like ours that we go forward† (Lugard 585). An example of colonialist tactics that were implemented towards the end of the nineteenth century that Conrad incorporated in â€Å"An outpost of progress† was Kayerts and Carlier being assigned to the trading outpost in Africa. These two men were transferred from government posts at home and sent, like the previous station chief to the unknown country to â€Å"civilize† the natives and establish good local markets and to earn profits to send home. However, Kayerts and Carlier were in no way, shape, or form the men for the job and the Director of the company knew it: Look at those two imbeciles. They must be mad at home to send me such specimens. I told those fellows to plant a vegetable garden, build new storehouses and fences, and construct a landing-stage. I bet nothing will be done! They wont know how to begin. I always thought the station on this river useless, and they just fit the station! They will form themselves there, said the old stager with a quiet smile. At any rate, I am rid of them for six months, retorted the director. (Conrad Page 2) Their mission was to bring their way of life to a savage people. Kayerts and Carlier and the Company represent what was going on culturally during the period of European expansion. The leaders of Europe saw it as their duty to conquer and rule countries containing different cultures and races of people. Cultural diversity was an unknown concept. People were placed on a scale of value, from highest to lowest. The people of Africa were seen as the lowest kind of people. European colonists believed they were at the high end of human development. They used every kind of coercion to subdue native people. From guns to religion, they thought it was their right, even their duty, to expand European beliefs, and values all over the world (Stanard). Like the station chief before them, however, their success was limited. Kayerts and Carlier were completely unprepared and unskilled to perform the work expected of them and that which would be necessary to build a successful â€Å"outpost of progress. † â€Å"They were two perfectly insignificant and incapable individuals, whose existence is only rendered possible through the high organization of civilized crowds† (Conrad Page 2). The two men had no clue of the opportunity for expansion that they had around them: They lived like blind men in a large room, aware only of what came in contact with them (and of that only imperfectly), but unable to see the general aspect of things. The river, the forest, all the great land throbbing with life, were like a great emptiness. Even the brilliant sunshine disclosed nothing intelligible. Things appeared and disappeared before their eyes in an unconnected and aimless kind of way. The river seemed to come from nowhere and flow nowhither. It flowed through a void. (Conrad 3-4) To go along with being unprepared and unskilled for their task, they also lacked good support from the Company that deployed them to this trading post. â€Å"The women of Gobilas village walked in single file through the reedy grass, bringing every morning to the station, fowls, and sweet potatoes, and palm wine, and sometimes a goat. The Company never provisions the stations fully, and the agents required those local supplies to live. They had them through the good-will of Gobila, and lived well. † How is someone to complete such a task without the proper assistance from their homeland? Moreover, how do you expect two men who do not remotely know each other and are both completely unfit to even come anywhere near completing the tasks that was set forth for them to do. However, despite these obstacles, Kayerts and Carlier were still drawn together due to their circumstances. Conrad wrote, â€Å"The two men got on well together in the fellowship of their stupidity and laziness. Together they did nothing, absolutely nothing, and enjoyed the sense of the idleness for which they were paid. And in time they came to feel something resembling affection for one another† (Conrad Page 3). Kayerts and Carlier had the help of a man from Sierra Leone by the name of Makola. It was very evident in the story that Makola did not like or at least have a common respect for the two Europeans. Although Makola was there to help Kayerts and Carlier at the outpost, he actually wound up using them to make himself richer by brokering deals for ivory tusks. The irony in this is that Kayerts and Carlier were sent to this trading post to establish viable markets and generate cash, yet the man assigned to help them who was believed to be of a lower race wound up using them to make him and his family wealthier. Makola went behind Kayerts and Carlier’s backs to make a trade for 6 ivory tusks for the ten workers assigned to that station. Kayerts and Carlier did not like the workers because they showed the exact same qualities as the two Europeans did, laziness and an inability to perform assigned tasks. Kayerts and Carlier found the â€Å"wilderness† (Conrad Page 2) around them untamed and threatening, not necessarily because of what it contained, but because they did not know what it contained. The â€Å"immense forests† hid â€Å"fateful complications of fantastic life,† (Conrad Page 4). The two white men had no idea what was in the forest but knew it was something and they believed it to be very profitable but were scared to go after it. This wildness of their surroundings also mirrored and amplified the â€Å"primitive nature of primitive man,† which, like the forest, â€Å"brings sudden and profound trouble into the heart† (Conrad Page 5). Although Kayerts and Carlier do absolutely nothing in an attempt to make their trading post a successful outpost of progress, they still believe they have done something significant. After reading a paper called â€Å"Our Colonial Expansion† the two men discuss how they will be the first â€Å"civilized† men to live in that area. Kayerts and Carlier believed that they have played a role in the civilization of a territory that may eventually, 100 years from that point, have â€Å"Quays, and warehouses, and barracks, and–and–billiard-rooms. Civilization, my boy, and virtue–and all† (Conrad Page 5). They are proud of the possibility that they were the first â€Å"civilized† men to live in this remote and worthless outpost that doesn’t possess any aspects of what they believe to be a civilized society. These attitudes represented that of colonialist powers perfectly. â€Å"Struggle and suffering have been the stages by which the white man has reached his present stage of development, and they account for the fact that he no longer lives in caves and feeds on roots and nuts† (Pearson Page 26). This sort of rhetoric was used by the colonial powers to convince its naive and unprepared representatives that â€Å"This dependence of progress on the survival of the fitter race, terribly black as it may seem to some of you, gives the struggle for existence its redeeming features; it is the fiery crucible out of which comes the finer metal† (Pearson Page 26). What the colonialists are saying is that although what we are doing is wrong, it is what needs to be done to bring these â€Å"savage† people to a more â€Å"civilized† way of living. The powerful countries of the world accepted the idea of European Expansion. The idea that white people were superior to those of color was nearly unquestioned. This perceived superiority ran very deep. Religion, culture, morals and values were all used to support the idea that Europeans were civilized while people in other countries were not. At the same time, an image of native people began to arise. As we struggle to understand one another, some have idolized the different. In the civil rights movement, all black people were considered to be good, or all black people were considered to be bad. Joseph Conrad, speaking at the end of the nineteenth century, saw these issues. He presented his evidence that all men are equal in one way or another. In â€Å"An Outpost of Progress† he didnt try to point out the good in all people, no matter what their color or culture. Instead, Conrad decided to show us that all people are capable of evil. In that one specific way, we are all equal because we all have the potential to do evil. Makola, the band of strangers, Carlier and Kayerts are all judging one another as inferior. Each of them is trying to overcome the other for his own personal gains. The irony in this is that even though Kayerts and Carlier held themselves to be superior to Makola and the rest of the native people and believed themselves to be more â€Å"civilized† than the â€Å"savage† people that they were sent to colonize, they turned to be just as evil and as much of a â€Å"savage as the rest of them when they got into an argument over sugar that resulted in the death of Carlier.