Florida's minimum wage should be increased to ten dollars per hour

Minimum Wages -- Florida Labor Law

This report supports the thesis below. The minimum wage payments in the state of Florida should be upped to the $10 mark because the cost of living has gone up over the years. Ironically, there has only been a 97 cents increase in the wage since 2010. Yet the cost of living has gone up by a much higher margin. The current minimum wage stands at $8.22. This makes life hard.

Minimum Wages Set by the Federal Authorities

The movement for the living wage has been pushing for an increase in the minimum wage in both cities and at federal level. Most of the advocates for a higher minimum wage are pushing for the indexing of the same to the cost of living. Unfortunately, the movements for the increase of the minimum wage have gained little success in influencing the federal policy regarding that matter. There is a possibility that the democratic leaders are afraid of the backlash they might get from business owners if they implement the recommendations for increasing the minimum wage. The democrats get a lot of their political funding from the business community. There is a chance that they do not agree with the position on ideological basis. Robert Gate mentioned his frustrations while serving under the Clinton regime because the president was reluctant to raise the minimum wage. John publicly declined to be associated with the prevalent talk of raising the minimum wage when he was on the presidential campaign trail against George Bush in 2004. John Kerry's loss in the presidential bid in that year could be linked to his failure to support a raise in the minimum wage bill because, in Florida, the wage bill initiative won in every state of Florida (Luce, 2012).

Calculating the Minimum Wage

The Gebaide law firm advises restaurant workers who happen to be the ones that live on minimum wage bill and tips. The firm advises these groups by sending advisories regarding minimum wage every year. The government uses the consumer price index to measure inflation levels. The tool generally shows the prices of specified household goods on a time continuum. In the 2008 recession, the minimum wage was maintained in Florida. The reason was linked to the state law that bars it from being reduced. The wage matter is heating up in many forums. Some advocates have been asking the federal authorities to raise the wage to $15 per hour. The proposal has gained acceptance in some places in the West Coast. Unfortunately for Florida workers, the momentum is still slow. It is also worth noting that the minimum wage in Florida is slightly above the national directive of at least $7.25 per hour (Brinkmann, 2015).

The Cost of Living in Florida

My relocation to Orlando has made me realize how much my money is worth in real sense. The moment of reckoning often comes when you move to a new city. You shudder when you look at the figures that give you a glimpse of the cost of living in your new city. My experience in Orlando came to a pivot point when I visited a food and grocery store to see the shocking prices of the daily food items. Although the food prices in New York were sometimes higher or at even level with Orlando's, some of the prices such as the cost of Orange juice was simply beyond my league. Now, the puzzle that was giving me a headache is that Oranges largely come from Florida. The question that begged was why orange juice wasn't cheap. Some of the unexpected costs that I encountered included the fact that I was required to secure a renter's insurance in case the place gets flooded. Well, this was obviously new to me- coming from Ohio or New York. This aspect of your expenses could set you back by around a couple of hundred dollars (Prichard, 2015).

The Influence of the Cost of Living on the Elderly

The study pointed out that the differentials in the cost of living among different groups in various counties in Florida largely affect the decision to migrate by the elderly. It still holds true after factoring in the cost of amenities they will need for such relocations. A number of researches have indicated that the cost of living is a motivation for the elderly to migrate from locations with a higher cost of living to ones that would cost less. Fournier tested this suggestion by using figures of migrants drawn from 48 states. There was some indication of the existence of such relationship. However, state-wide control variables on amenities led to unexpected results. The data that was used in the mentioned study allows a stricter control of amenities because migration within the state reflects a more homogenous trend compared to moving from one state to the next. Generally, the migration trends were shown to be influenced by the prevailing cost of living (Rasmussen, et al., 1988).

Need for Increased Minimum Wages in Florida

Although the Chamber of Commerce had predicted that Florida would bear the brunt of one of the highest payrolls in the country in 2015, unemployment rates came down in the first year of the introduction of the new minimum wage. The cost of living has risen by 2.8% per year. It is clear that the wage minimum is far short of the 10% that was predicted in 2010. The issue of the minimum wage has once again gained momentum in Florida. There have been legal actions in a bid to raise the figure to $15 per hour. There is a more recent reference guide this time. The legislators should vouch for an increase of between $1 and $2 and try to stabilize the cost of living. If that succeeds, Florida will be among the top ten States in high minimum wage caps. It is possible that a higher wage will remove service industry employees from benefitting from government assistance programs. If it happens, it will also assist the middle class. However, in Florida, owing to the large gap, higher wages will eat into the high funds paid to CEOs (Romano, 2016).