Revising the Minimum Wage for the 1990s
32 Pages Posted: 21 Oct 2009
Date Written: October 20, 1989
Abstract
This article examines the federal-wage floor concept of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) in light of the current legislative debate to increase the minimum wage. The arguments of proponents and opponents of the initial minimum wage law and its periodic increases have remained fairly constant over the past fifty years. The opponents' concerns about potential loss of jobs, negative impact upon businesses, and the economy and the questionable efficiency of the wage floor in reaching the neediest workers to eliminate poverty remain the most prevalent reasons cited. The harmful impact of a minimum wage increase on the competitiveness of U.S. business in the international sphere has emerged as the foremost issue of opponents in this decade.
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