After reading the essay “Should Fast-Food Workers Be Paid $15 per Hour” written by a student who goes by the name of Trudie Makens, it was clear that her piece fell under the genre of “articles in public affairs” (27) even as an exploratory essay for a class discussion. The topic of whether minimum wage should be raised or kept the same is discussed through various viewpoints from minimum wage employees to a business perspective. The essay’s purpose is to allow the reader to be exposed to the two sides of the argument and allow the reader to formulate their own opinions on the topic of potentially raising the minimum wage of low income jobs. Makens’ essay was incredibly effective in allowing the reader to ultimately come up with their own
…show more content…
She made note that often times those coworkers were struggling financially due to the low pay of their jobs. Makens encouraged the idea of raising the pay of minimum wage to a livable amount. This stance sparked an economic conversation due to the fact that a possible increase in pay for low income jobs could very well negatively affect the …show more content…
Makens first included The New Yorker author, James Surowiecki’s “The Pay Is Too Dam Low” and took note of his stance on being for the raise of minimum wage by the creation of a “European-style safety net system.” (45) She then included her own doubting points based from Surowiecki’s article by questioning how the government would even be able to raise the money for that type of safety net system. Makens then moved to another article piece from a business perspective by the name of “To Help The Poor, Move Beyond ‘Minimum’ Gestures,” written by Michael Saltsman. She was persuaded by Saltsman’s comments about “the negative economic consequences of a living wage” (46) but she wasn’t satisfied that the living wage was completely ineffective. Makens continues this method of searching for more differing views of the topic of raising minimum wage so that low income employees can live off of their earnings. She effectively showed her audience the many views of the argument and her opinions and takes from each source she
She made note that often times those coworkers were struggling financially due to the low pay of their jobs. Makens encouraged the idea of raising the pay of minimum wage to a livable amount. This stance sparked an economic conversation due to the fact that a possible increase in pay for low income jobs could very well negatively affect the …show more content…
Makens first included The New Yorker author, James Surowiecki’s “The Pay Is Too Dam Low” and took note of his stance on being for the raise of minimum wage by the creation of a “European-style safety net system.” (45) She then included her own doubting points based from Surowiecki’s article by questioning how the government would even be able to raise the money for that type of safety net system. Makens then moved to another article piece from a business perspective by the name of “To Help The Poor, Move Beyond ‘Minimum’ Gestures,” written by Michael Saltsman. She was persuaded by Saltsman’s comments about “the negative economic consequences of a living wage” (46) but she wasn’t satisfied that the living wage was completely ineffective. Makens continues this method of searching for more differing views of the topic of raising minimum wage so that low income employees can live off of their earnings. She effectively showed her audience the many views of the argument and her opinions and takes from each source she