Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
The increased cost of living coupled with the daily demands and needs of virtually all human beings is the driving force towards the achievement of a better life. The majority of people that are able to live an admirably and comfortably are those that have managed to secure decent employment or jobs for themselves. At the same time, there is also a large group of people that continue to struggle to afford basic amenities such as housing and healthcare. This fact emphasizes the importance of labor policies and laws, especially in the Canadian context. The topic of minimum wage has sparked a lot of debate because people are striving to ensure that every employee can be able to live in a contented manner. The amount that should be placed as a minimum wage should also serve as a form of protection so that workers are not oppressed or exploited by their employees. This paper is an argumentative essay that discusses whether minimum wage would be increased. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
Essay topic
Should minimum wage be increased? Focus on the labor market policies in Canada.
Thesis argument that guides the essay
Minimum wage should be increased so as to reduce the poverty levels and ensure Canadians are able to live comfortably from the earnings of their employment.
Body of the Essay
The mandate of enforcing the laws that regulate the labor industry and market in Canada is entrusted to the federal legislation branch. The latter has the obligation of making sure that they deal with issues relating to minimum wages, safety at work as well as the maximum hours that employees should work in a day (Ehrcke, 2015). The subject matter of minimum wage always sparks a lot of heated debates with people criticizing and condemning it in equal measure. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
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Minimum wage refers to the lowest amount of money that should be paid out to an
employee for services rendered on a daily basis. This amount is set by the basic standard of labor
to all persons that are in employment as per the jurisdiction of the constitution (Dickson and
Myatt, 2012). In Canada, this minimum wage was established as a way of protecting workers
that belong to the union from exploitation in most of the unskilled jobs such as mining and
construction. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.The actual amount that has been set for minimum wage stands at 11 dollars and this
is described as being too low considering the fact that life in Canada is overly expensive (Luce,
2015). What’s more, in provinces such as Alberta and Ontario, the workers in most unskilled
jobs struggle to survive and have to take up more than three jobs so that they can sustain
themselves.
Despite this fact, most of them actually get to live under the poverty line and cannot even
afford decent healthcare or even life insurance. The debate of whether minimum wage should be
increased or not should be proposed such that the amount is raised to at least 15 dollars
(MacDonald and Aaronson, 2006). One of the reasons for increasing this wage is to ensure that
workers and employees can be able to live comfortably and at the same time provide for their
families and immediate dependents. Moreover, the increase would boost the overall Canadian
economy because people would have more disposable income and they would be able to invest it
in different areas such as company stocks or even in business (MacDonald and Aaronson, 2006). Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
At the same time, the labor unions also stand to gain a lot because they would have lesser
cases to settle when it comes to payment disputes. Additionally, this increase would also see the
rise in demand for services and goods in the market as more people would be able to afford them
comfortably. However, an increase in the amount of minimum wage can also be seen as being
disadvantageous because it can interfere with the circulation of money in the country. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
A sudden influx of money into the economy is bound to crash the Canadian currency and
this would ultimately reduce its face value (Campolieti et al, 2014). Moreover, the rate of
inflation would increase rapidly so that the government can be able to regulate the level of
spending. Regardless of this fact, it would be wise for Canada to increase its minimum wage to
avoid the struggle that most families have to go through in life. Moreover, the government also
stands to benefit because it would reduce the amount of time, money and effort that is put into
taking care of the families that cannot afford decent housing (Brochu and Green, 2013). Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
In addition, the economy and social settings are constantly changing and evolving with
the passage of time. This means that the wages that are paid to workers as the minimum amount
also need to be revised as time continues to pass. In fact, this remuneration deserves to be
revised, adjusted and re-evaluated from time to time so that it can reflect the current needs of the
average Canadian citizen (Sen and Ariizumi, 2013). This process would also see to it that the
standard of living is increased in a way that it can be described as being economically sustainable
for every employment venture.
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It should also be noted that the minimum wage is supposed to be the lowest amount of
money that is paid to an employee to help them maintain their lifestyle in accordance to the
standards and policies set by the labor bodies within each respective province (Fang and
Gunderson, 2009). The employment laws of Canada are very strict and they endeavor to ensure
that any person who is employed is not mistreated or humiliated in the form of receiving wages
that are too dismal. The process of increasing the minimum wage in Canada is bound to be a
tricky strategy because the legislations that govern employment and labor are applied in a
provincial manner. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
This means that provinces such as British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec or even Alberta all
have their own amount that is set as the minimum wage (Sen and Ariizumi, 2013). Therefore, all
the workers and employees in Canada are not actually entitled to the same amount or rate of the
minimum wage. Wage Increment Assignment Paper. However, the difference in this remuneration is quite small and it only affects
the cents on top of the dollar. A classic example is in Alberta where the minimum wage is set at
10.20 dollars while in Nunavut, the amount is exactly 11 dollars (Sen and Ariizumi, 2013). This
means that the difference is the cents on top of the 10.20 amount that remain to make it to 11
dollars. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
This explains why there is a countrywide campaign to increase this minimum wage so
that every Canadian citizen can have a decent payment irrespective of the province that they
work. In addition, this strategy would see to it that the provisions that are present in the
legislations do not discriminate such that each person becomes entitled to the same wage
(MacDonald and Aaronson, 2006). At the same time, the process of increasing the minimum
amount of money paid to employees would help in protecting the people that are categorized as
having special needs. This is because some provinces such as Manitoba and Saskatchewan are
known to pay people with disabilities a much lower wage as compared to their normal
counterparts. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
Such an act out rightly screams discrimination and increasing the minimum wage to a
constant amount would be a huge benefit to these individuals (Campolieti et al, 2014).
Furthermore, the advocating for an increase in payment means that people would move out of the
poverty class and enter another one where they can afford additional services and provisions. For
instance, if the poverty line in Canada stands at ten percent, then an increase in the minimum
wage means that the measure for low income will be adjusted to take account of the people that are earning extra money (Brochu and Green, 2013). The fact that Canada is also a free market means that its national economy can benefit from an increase in minimum wage based on the
professions and work in question. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
It would also introduce the aspect of appreciation such that employees within these
diverse sectors can be able to value the services that they render in exchange for monetary
compensation (Brochu and Green, 2013). Moreover, increasing the amount of cash paid out as
the minimum to an employee would help in solving the challenges that come with equal
distribution of wealth as well as streamlining incomes. On one hand, the standards of living are
bound to be improved because inequality in income affects the conditions of macroeconomics
(Ehrcke, 2015). On the other hand, an increase in minimum wage also means that the overall
labor market can also be able to revolutionize itself based on the same subject matter.
It is also a well-known fact that the exploitation and oppression that most employees
encounter at work is caused by poor pay (Dickson and Myatt, 2012). Therefore, if this amount is
increased to a reasonable and decent amount, it means that these issues can be avoided
significantly. At the same time, the consumer economy in Canada stands to gain a lot from this
process because there would be an influx in the activities that revolve around business and trade. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
The reason is that workers who have more money will be willing to participate in
entrepreneurship in the long term. However, there are also some few concerns that this process
can bring. One of them is that the increase of minimum wages can be an uphill task for the small
and upcoming private businesses (Luce, 2015). This kind of situation can stagnate the growth of
the small-scale industry because businesses would find it hard to pay their employees and at the
same time develop themselves. Moreover, it should be noted that raising the amount of money
that is paid on the lower side does not automatically mean that it will provide a cure for poverty.
In fact, this approach can easily spark an opposite reaction where the cost of services and
goods increases due to the availability of money from the public (MacDonald and Aaronson,
2006). This action means that people would spend their extra income on buying this hiked goods
while their living standards would remain the same. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.Despite these challenges, it is only in order
to increase the amount of minimum wage so that all the stakeholders involved in labor policing
and employment in Canada can stand to gain (Luce, 2015). This process would also see to it that
there is an equilibrium rate in payment that should match the demand of employment in an equal
manner. The end result is the achievement of economic stability and decent lifestyles for the
majority of the Canadian community. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
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Conclusion
The wave of revolution that has swept through the economic and social pillars of virtually
all countries has seen the majority of people adjust their lifestyle. Part of this alteration is also
made based on the earnings that households are able to make at the end of the day, month or
year. The subject of minimum wage is an ongoing debate that always sparks out a lot of criticism
and condemnation. In Canada, the labor policies and legislation that are mandated with the task
of handling minimum wage do so because they want to bring an end to the oppression and
victimization of unskilled workers. The process of increasing the amount of minimum wages has
its own benefits to both the government and the employees involved. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.
One of them is that it would reduce the level of poverty because people would be able to
live off what they are paid. It also means that there would be a lot of disposable income that can
be used to stabilize the economy in the form of establishing businesses, trading activities as well
as entrepreneurial ventures. Additionally, it would bring about income equity that would be an
important factor in making sure that wealth is distributed fairly. This is a strategy that can also benefit the government because they would have fewer crises to address especially with regards to housing, medical care or even insurance. The Canadian government should consider this
subject matter at depth so that the living standards of its citizens are able to match the changing
economic times. Wage Increment Assignment Paper.