Many progressive Democrats aspire to create legislation that would mandate a $15 minimum wage for all 50 states in the U.S. While the idea continues to be a matter of discussion in the halls of Congress, the state of Florida has recently voted for a $15 minimum wage for its workers. A short time ago, the U.S. was shutdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Florida is one of the states with the highest rates of infection. Now that the country is back open, Florida voters in the 2020 election have successfully approved the creation of a Constitutional Amendment to increase the state’s minimum wage. Florida will be one of eight states that have a minimum wage of $15.
The state has beaches, tourism destinations, popular recreational parks like Disney World, Sea World and Universal Studios. There remains a constant influx of visitors to the state who travel to multiple destinations on their vacations. Florida has one of the biggest state economies in the world.
Providing employees with a livable wage will further strengthen the workforce in the state and may encourage others to put the higher minimum wage on their ballots. It is undeniable, the raising of the minimum wage-particularly during a pandemic-is a sign of economic strength.
Critics of the new policy suggest that raising the minimum wage will hurt small businesses that may not be able to afford to pay their employees. Many businesses in Florida will be able to provide the increase in pay due to the state’s economic activity.
However, if the policy becomes approved in a state with a slowly moving economy, small businesses will be adversely affected. While some politicians want a mandated $15 minimum wage across the board, there is another way for the policy to become law.
If the politicians in Washington can reach out to Governors, Congressmen and small business owners and start a constructive dialogue, they may find an alternative solution to raising the minimum wage in states that have small economies.
The other states with a $15 minimum wage are California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. Everyone of these states has either a large, booming economy or progressive thinking voters. After examining analysis regarding the wage in the open source, there are many employment advocates for the policy as well as those opposed to it.
There is a dichotomy in the analysis of the wage increase. Many advocates believe that it will help workers get out of poverty, while others think it will cause too many companies to lay-off workers.
The implementation of the $15 minimum wage is not a black and white issue, there is a grey area that suggests that both sides are right. Some states will be better equipped to provide their workers with a wage increase and others will not have the capability of doing so.
The majority of states in the U.S. have a low minimum wage. Since the increase has been made available to economies on the west, east and southern coast of the country, interested parties in the mid-west are going to be looking into the policy as well
.In the case of Florida and the other states with a $15 minimum wage, it is a clear indication that voters do not have to wait for an Executive order for change to come.