Atlanta Forward readers responded to our recent pro and con columns about teen unemployment and raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10. Here are some comments from our blog under the writers’ chosen screen names.
Middle of the road: The federal minimum wage has lagged behind the cost of living for the past several decades. If it had kept pace with inflation since the late 1960s, it would be more than $10.55 today. There is more to the story than just simple wages. What about benefits? The costs of benefits, especially medical insurance, have hit businesses hard. Workers complain about having to pay more for insurance but rarely understand that businesses are paying much more. Combine the minimum wage with benefits in the 1960s and compare it to today's figures. If a company offers insurance — and most will have to under Obamacare — the amount paid on behalf of the employee is probably a lot more than in the '60s.
DC: As a relatively conservative-leaning person, I actually don't think increasing the minimum wage, especially for businesses above a certain size, is a bad idea. Make work attractive to enough people, and hopefully, at least some would develop the skills and attitude to work. Some wouldn't, of course. But I'd like to think enough would to make it worthwhile to society.
RickinGrayson: Illegal aliens have taken jobs that teens and young people used to do. That won't happen again for a long, long, long time. New immigration laws will legalize more than 11 million low-skilled workers and allow hundreds of thousands to enter the country each year. Our politicians are putting the interests of foreign nationals before those of U.S. citizens.
SAWB: We have several teens in the extended family who would like to work, but often want the job to fit their schedules. A couple of them stopped looking after realizing they may have to work weekends, rotating schedules or travel more than five minutes from home. However, my oldest niece hustled and ended up with three job offers. She ultimately accepted one about 30 minutes away from home with less desirable hours, but at an above-minimum-wage salary. I guess the point is, jobs are difficult to find and seldom fit someone's idea of perfect. However, if teens really wish to work and think outside the box, they can often find something.
