Franklin Roosevelt once said, 'No business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country.'

These are words which are once again relevant in America, largely because the issue of minimum wage will (hopefully) be one which will take center stage in the 2006 election. In light of this, it is important that we pause and identify the facts surrounding the debate, for once the facts are brought clearly to light, the choice is clear: if given a choice this November, Ohioans should vote to raise the minimum wage, if for no other reason than many objections to raising minimum wage are, in reality, false.

One oft-touted objection to raising the wage is that the majority of minimum wage workers are teenagers; hence, a minimum wage increase is not necessary. This could not be farther from the truth. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), a full 87 percent of minimum wage workers are over the age of twenty. Thirty five percent are the sole income earners for their households. There are currently over 500,000 Ohioans working for $5.15. Do the math.

Another nugget of rhetorical nonsense would suggest that raising the minimum wage would be detrimental to small business. Again, rhetorical nonsense. An April 2004 study by the think tank Fiscal Policy Institute states with a minimum wage higher than the federal minimum found that 'small employers in'higher minimum wage states generally fared better than small employers in other states,' and while this is not enough to 'conclude that increasing the minimum wage will boost employment growth,' it is 'hard to argue that'businesses, or all small businesses, will be adversely affected by higher minimum wages.'

Think of it practically: a small business owner will likely be compelled by the forces of the market to pay his workers more than the minimum wage anyway as a way to keep turnover low and retain quality employees. The entities who will be affected by an increase would be the McDonalds and Wal-Marts to whom employees are disposable, and who, quite frankly, can afford it.

The simple fact is this: a minimum wage worker makes only $10,712 per year. And that $10,712 assumes a worker working full time, forty hours a week, fifty two weeks per year. And that $10,712 he makes per year is before taxes. No one deserves to work full time and remain in poverty. The choice for Ohioans this November should be clear: a vote for a minimum wage increase is the right one.

Geoff Pipoly
Graduate Student
Public Administration