minimum wage in michigan

Posted: August 5th, 2013

Minimum wage in Michigan

Outline and background

Minimum wage refers to the lowest minimum remuneration that can be paid to workers by their employees. Conversely, it can also be described as the lowest level of remuneration at which laborers can sell their skill. The historical background of can be traced back to New Zealand and Australia when policy reforms were adopted to counter the effects of undermining girls and women’s economic rights. The response was an adoption by states to set minimum wage limits for all laborers that would see them afford the basic needs of life. Within Michigan, minimum wage struggles have been the norm ever since the passing of the Minimum wage law (Miller, 2004).

The minimum wage policies have been cited as beneficial to the bulk of laborers who are paid insufficiently. Such benefits like increase in the living standards, motivation for employees and consumption stimulation have been associated with this law. However, the minimum wage is also responsible for secluding low cost competitors from accessing laborers and stops companies from lowering wage costs in the case of a trade depression. Minimum wages have also been criticized by analysts as causing inflation when businesses attempt to raise the prices of their goods in order to compensate for the losses accruing from increasing laborers wages.