2008 Woodie Awards
Students: Wage increase a step in the right direction
By Lexxie Shiring
Rocket Contributor
Issue date: 9/7/07 Section: News
Students share mixed feelings about the minimum wage change that took place on July 24.
Minimum wage has increased by two dollars in Pennsylvania for the first time since 1997. It was first raised in January from $5.15 to $6.25, and then again on July 24 to $7.15. The federal minimum wage currently sits at $5.85.
According to the Merged Outgoing Rotation Groups of the 2004 Current Population Survey, minimum wage has affected the lives of 510,000 Pennsylvania workers and 71.1 percent of those workers are adults who are 20 years or older.
Pennsylvania's poverty rate has increased to over 15 million - meaning that one in every eight people are poverty-stricken.
Changing minimum wage to $7.15 an hour could be a strategy to help end poverty in the state and guarantee benefits to Pennsylvania's working poor, according to Pennsylvania's Department of Labor and Industry.
AVI Dining Associate Amy Retucci, a senior history education major, is satisfied with the new minimum wage.
"I have worked for fewer minimum wages, so working for the new minimum wage makes me happy," she said.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, it takes an individual earning minimum wage almost a whole day's work to fill up his or her tank of gas.
SRU Volleyball Graduate Assistant Erin Street agrees.
"I think raising minimum wage is positive thing but also due to the fact that prices are going up. They go hand in hand," she said. "Economy prices are rising, so that means that minimum wage had to be increased."
Jami Golab, a junior elementary education major, had a different outlook on the situation.
"I am glad that it has increased, but I feel that it needs to be increased again," she said. "I think that depending on the job, because some workers do not get paid as much as they deserve for the jobs they perform.
Therefore, I think it needs to be raised."
Student workers now receive the new minimum wage of $7.15 an hour, but that will change come July 2008, when it will be increased to $7.25.
"It would be great if we could pay student workers more than we do. They just got a pretty large raise, but it would be nice if we could pay them as much as they earn while working at the outlets," a clerical staff member of the McLachlan Student Health Center said.
Pennsylvania, along with 19 other states and Washington, D.C., have now all raised minimum wage above the federal mandate.
"I think the increase is good for people in general, but for the economy itself it is not," said Sarah Penniman, a retail supervisor at Rocky's Grille and senior environmental studies major.
"Now all of the prices will go up and we will have to keep raising minimum wage. Nothing will be solved."
Some believe that even though the minimum wage increase is a step in the right direction, student workers should not be paid more than minimum wage."That is what I was paid in school," Street said.
"It might mess up the system if we pay them more than minimum wage."
Minimum wage has increased by two dollars in Pennsylvania for the first time since 1997. It was first raised in January from $5.15 to $6.25, and then again on July 24 to $7.15. The federal minimum wage currently sits at $5.85.
According to the Merged Outgoing Rotation Groups of the 2004 Current Population Survey, minimum wage has affected the lives of 510,000 Pennsylvania workers and 71.1 percent of those workers are adults who are 20 years or older.
Pennsylvania's poverty rate has increased to over 15 million - meaning that one in every eight people are poverty-stricken.
Changing minimum wage to $7.15 an hour could be a strategy to help end poverty in the state and guarantee benefits to Pennsylvania's working poor, according to Pennsylvania's Department of Labor and Industry.
AVI Dining Associate Amy Retucci, a senior history education major, is satisfied with the new minimum wage.
"I have worked for fewer minimum wages, so working for the new minimum wage makes me happy," she said.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, it takes an individual earning minimum wage almost a whole day's work to fill up his or her tank of gas.
SRU Volleyball Graduate Assistant Erin Street agrees.
"I think raising minimum wage is positive thing but also due to the fact that prices are going up. They go hand in hand," she said. "Economy prices are rising, so that means that minimum wage had to be increased."
Jami Golab, a junior elementary education major, had a different outlook on the situation.
"I am glad that it has increased, but I feel that it needs to be increased again," she said. "I think that depending on the job, because some workers do not get paid as much as they deserve for the jobs they perform.
Therefore, I think it needs to be raised."
Student workers now receive the new minimum wage of $7.15 an hour, but that will change come July 2008, when it will be increased to $7.25.
"It would be great if we could pay student workers more than we do. They just got a pretty large raise, but it would be nice if we could pay them as much as they earn while working at the outlets," a clerical staff member of the McLachlan Student Health Center said.
Pennsylvania, along with 19 other states and Washington, D.C., have now all raised minimum wage above the federal mandate.
"I think the increase is good for people in general, but for the economy itself it is not," said Sarah Penniman, a retail supervisor at Rocky's Grille and senior environmental studies major.
"Now all of the prices will go up and we will have to keep raising minimum wage. Nothing will be solved."
Some believe that even though the minimum wage increase is a step in the right direction, student workers should not be paid more than minimum wage."That is what I was paid in school," Street said.
"It might mess up the system if we pay them more than minimum wage."
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