Minimum wage in Los Angeles County, which is currently $9 per hour, is going to be raised to $10 per hour come January 2016.
But that is not enough for Mayor Eric Garcetti, who is proposing a plan to have minimum wage increased to $13.25 by 2017.
While the minimum wage increase sounds great now, it unfortunately will not achieve the desired effect of bringing many families out of poverty.
When one aspect of the economy is changed, it creates a ripple effect that changes every aspect of the economy.
By increasing minimum wage, a company’s profit is going to decrease. Unless the company is a non-profit organization, its goals are to gain as much revenue as possible, leading to an increase in prices.
An increase in pricing leads to a higher cost of living. A higher cost of living leads to needing a larger monthly income per household, creating a cycle that leads back to a minimum wage increase.
The proof is in the past.
If you look back 50 years ago, minimum wage was significantly less than it is now, but so was the cost of living. As pay increased, so did the price of everything else from a loaf of bread to the purchase price of a house.
When I was hired at my current job back in 2013, minimum wage was about $8 an hour. I was, and still am, paid $12 an hour plus tip-outs, but it is still not enough to live independently off of. When minimum wage increased to $9 an hour, I took notice to a very slight price increase as I was spending more on necessities and was having less money leftover after paying bills.
I love Los Angeles. It generally is a beautiful, diverse place with so many cultures and background, but unfortunately not all of it is so beautiful and there are areas of extreme poverty that once were full of hope and dreams.
However, America is a democratic, not socialist, country where you get in life what you work for as a child, as a student and by taking advantage of opportunity or good fortune.
While I love the idea of making more money to help me get by while attending college, I unfortunately have to say that it is not a good idea for such a dramatic wage increase because it is only going to increase the price of living and I am still going to be financially where I am now only at a higher cost.
