Description
Danielle:
Implementing a minimum wage calculation provides transparency in how much people are earning versus how much they need to live. Companies may be incentivized to increase their wages to attract employees and remain competitive. I think it is particularly important for million dollar companies who record increasing profits each year. To be able to compare what they are paying employees versus what their employees need to live provides them, consumers, and employees with information that can affect their reputation. Should companies choose to implement the calculation, the benefit is that employees are able to increase their wages. Having the calculation itself would allow each community to recognize the larger disparities and inequities in their communities and can help them target solutions in that area, whether it be by partnering with businesses or creating policy change.
I initially thought a drawback would be that small businesses would be more strongly affected, but according to Crumley (2024), many small businesses are already paying more than minimum wage. While this may still be less than living wage, they are managing to remain competitive. However, moving forward, this calculation may affect very young businesses or it may be more difficult for entrepreneurs to start their own businesses. They may see the cost of new business as too high. Another drawback is that businesses may see the living wage calculation as something to pass on to the consumers. They may continue to increase their prices using the calculation as a justification.
California needs to consider the state of housing in the region. Even if all employees were paid a living wage, if housing continues to be expensive and increase, the additional money from the living wage increase will simply go back to housing. People may still be living paycheck to paycheck or unable to save for unforeseen circumstances. Another factor California should consider is continuing education. California should continue its focus on preschool-12 education, but there should also be workforce development and training to support those already in the workforce. By providing adults with more opportunities for education, California can work to make progress on some of inequities that have long-lasting effects.
Eduardo:
Proposing a living wage in California could do some good stuff but might also have some problems. One good thing is that it could help reduce poverty by making sure workers get a decent wage. This could make people more financially stable. Also, including housing costs in the wage could make it easier for workers to afford a place to live.But, there are some issues to think about. Small businesses might find it hard to deal with the extra cost of paying higher wages. They might have to cut jobs or increase prices to stay in business. Industries that don’t make a lot of profit could struggle to stay competitive. Plus, there’s a worry that the higher minimum wage might make things more expensive overall.To make things better for everyone, California should think about other stuff too. Making healthcare more affordable is a good idea because it helps more people get the care they need. Focusing on building things like roads and bridges not only creates jobs but also makes communities better. And, supporting small businesses in smart ways can help them stay strong and boost the economy.In short, a living wage could help with money troubles and housing, but it’s important to think about the possible issues and also do other things, like making healthcare cheaper and helping small businesses, to really make a positive impact in California.
Maria:
An opportunity that California would have if we implemented a living wage calculation is that people’s financial stability would improve. Which means they would be able to cover all of their necessities and other needs without struggling. It can also help them spend more time with their loved ones and focus on themselves a bit and it can help reduce stress and anxiety. Another opportunity is that not a lot of people would be on assistance because they would be able to support themselves and their families with the living wages they earn instead of relying on government assistance which would make them feel better about themselves (Kagan 2024). a potential drawback is that prices might go up. this is because many businesses especially small businesses are going to pay their employees more so they will have to raise the prices of their products or services to be able to make a profit and not lose money. it’s going to hurt companies and small businesses the most because not all of them can raise salaries in this economy (Kagan 2024). A factor that California should consider to improve the socioeconomic status of its citizens is education. I feel like with a good education people can find better jobs with higher income and that will help them live comfortably without struggling. Another thing is affordable healthcare, if healthcare was affordable people could improve their health and their financial situation. Also, California is expensive overall, from buying a house to groceries it has gotten expensive over time and a lot of people aren’t able to afford the expenses so affordable housing and necessities can also help a lot of people out.
Nahid:
Senate Bill 352 introduced by Senator Steve Padilla proposes the implementation of a living wage for individuals meeting specific requirements. If California implements a living wage calculation, it will allow minimum wage workers to earn enough to live in one of the most expensive states of our nation. According to the United Way of California Real Cost Measure, over 3.5 million families are struggling financially to provide for their families. (District 18, 2023) This bill could help move individuals out of the poverty line and support their families with sufficient resources. Since this bill incorporates housing as part of the consideration, it could also help or prevent homelessness for our most vulnerable populations.
Some potential drawbacks involve companies passing this increase down to the consumer through increased prices and higher inflation as a result. This could also become difficult for smaller companies (mom and pop shops) that are not able to support higher wages and may not be able to continue conducting business any longer. In these cases, the smaller businesses may close up which will impact communities that do not have access to a variety of resources.
Other factors to improve socioeconomic status are to promote and provide access to higher education for all members of society, remove barriers for individuals seeking government assistance (such as applications for SNAP and ease of navigating through systems), and create unique policies for geographic regions that suit the needs of the surrounding communities rather than a blanket approach that meets the needs of a few. Oftentimes when the state gets involved, it may cause these regulations may take a long time to implement but it is needed for the betterment of the society as a whole.
Elijah :
If the wages were to be calculated and fixed then people would worry less about money. With people worrying less about money there can be a decrease in mental illness and stress and more people would be happier. With less people stressing about money there would also be less homeless families on the streets and the kids of America would be able to live better lives.
The biggest problem with giving people money is laziness. Some people only work the bare minimum to live because they will get more money from the government. If wages are calculated this could make more Americans lazier and with that will never get out of the hole of poverty. The worst problem would be lazy Americans exploiting the government’s money to live the way of not contributing to society whatsoever. This would affect the people who actually are benefiting from the government’s money but it would be possible that the government will stop giving out that money because they aren’t getting a positive enough effect for it and would put some of the hard work back in the hole again.
This would be harder to do but if the government would find out who the people that are taking their money just to continue to be lazy are then they would have to be a criteria to complete in order to receive that money. Like a starting business and asking a bank for a loan, the people who will get the money must show them that they will do good things with that money.
