Raising The Minimum Wage Benefits All

This year there’s been an ongoing debate in Congress concerning raising the federal minimum wage. The current federal minimum wage is just $7.25/hour with the minimum cash wage for tipped workers $2.13/hour. Further, because these amounts are not adjusted for inflation the amount minimum wage workers take home is becoming increasingly tight. In fact, single parent households making minimum wage with two kids falls thousands of dollars below the poverty line. Making matters worse, in certain situations employers may fail to pay workers the total amount of compensation they are entitled to as the result of errors in employee classification, not paying workers the full amount for time required to be at work, or other violations of the Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

If you have questions concerning your pay and whether you are receiving all of the compensation you are entitled to, seek the advice of an experienced Atlanta minimum wage lawyer right away.

Although any decision on raising the minimum wage will not be made for some time, momentum is gaining in support of an upward adjustment. The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) has just released new minimum wage statistics showing the benefits to entire communities both socially and economically when the minimum wage is raised. Raising the minimum wage to $9.80 over three years (and adjust for inflation after that) and the cash minimum wage for tipped workers to 70 percent of the minimum wage would lift the wages of more than 28 million workers, the majority of whom (55 percent) are women.

Further, the report shows that raising the minimum wage would create an estimated 100,000 new jobs by putting money in the pockets of people who are ready to spend it on goods and services, thus increasing consumer demand. Raising the federal minimum wage would also provide local benefits. In Georgia nearly one million workers may be affected by an increase in minimum wage. This would translate into an improved standard of living for many.

For more information or if you believe you have not been receiving all of the wages you are entitled to, please contact the top Georgia wage and hour lawyers at Buckley Bala Wilson Mew LLP right away.