Minimum Wage and The Poverty Line

There is an estimated 1.6 million people in the country that are currently earning minimum wage. If you factor in that eighty eight percent of minimum wage employees are in their twenties or older, that is a little over 1.4 million people that are most likely living on their own while trying to make a lifestyle on a salary that barely puts them over the poverty line.  The national poverty line for a family of two is set at $14,570. If one works full time for an entire year on minimum wage, they will earn $15,080. For any single parent trying to raise a child, they will need this wage to be increased so they can provide a better life for themselves, but their families.

According to the Bureau Of Labor Statistics the states of Texas, Idaho, Louisiana, and Oklahoma have the highest percent of minimum wage workers. The state of Oklahoma needs to be aware of this and not be naive to think that the state will be OK with sticking to the federal minimum wage law. Increasing minimum wage in the state of Oklahoma has the potential to change thousands of lives. A simple $2.85 an hour increase may not seem like a lot, but over time working forty hour shifts an employee will go from making $290 a week to $404 a week. These extra $104 a week can have a hugely positive impact on the community today, improving the lives of thousands.