Jordan Moss

Jordan Moss

Professor Mitchell

UWRT 1104 054

8 September 2017

Topic Proposal: Should Minimum Wage be Raised?

There are plenty of American households in which both parents work long shifts at a

minimum wage job, and they still cant afford the necessities like food and clothes for their

children. Due to their financial situations, theyre unable to go to college and get a degree so they

can get a higher-paying job. Also, because healthy foods like fruits and vegetables are so

expensive, low-income families often dont have much of a choice but to eat at a fast food

restaurant instead, which contributes to the growing issue of obesity in America. I think its

unfair that these people, who work so hard just to make ends meet, are stuck in a hole that

theyre unable to get out of. If minimum wage was raised, they would be able to afford things

their families need without having to work such long shifts at difficult and sometimes dangerous

jobs. This would greatly improve their quality of life. There has been a lot of controversy in the

past, especially during the 2016 election season, about whether raising minimum wage would be

a good idea or not. Could it potentially have negative effects on the economy? For my Extended

Inquiry Project, Id like to research and write about whether or not raising minimum wage would

be good for Americans and/or the US economy.

Ive chosen the topic of raising minimum wage because I think its important. Its also pretty

controversial, so Id like to see if I can find some solid evidence that it should or should not be

raised. I dont know if raising minimum wage would negatively impact the economy, but my

goal is to find out. Once I do some more research and learn more about the effects it may have,
 Jordan Moss

Ill argue for or against it. I will get all of my information from scholarly articles and credible

governmental or educational websites. I can determine if the website is a credible source by

making sure the publisher is reputable, and by analyzing the text to see if its heavily biased.

Sometimes authors are sponsored by companies who are willing to pay them to say certain

things, so Ill need to make sure the information is accurate. I can do this by looking for other

sources that say the same thing. Ill also try to make sure the information can support the

arguments Im trying to make.

Im interested in the topic of raising minimum wage because I think its important. Ive been

very fortunate that my family has not been in this situation, so I do not have any firsthand

experience with this topic, but I know that there are a lot of people suffering because of their

financial situations and Id like to know if it would help them at all if minimum wage were

raised. Im almost certain it would. But what Id really like to investigate the most is whether or

not it would have a harmful impact on the economy. This is a pretty controversial topic, so it

may not be possible, but Id like to see if I can try to find some good, solid evidence that it

should or should not be raised. And when I can find some good evidence, Ill argue for or against

raising minimum wage.

My next step in this project is to do a lot more research. There are a lot of things I need to

research, like income inequality, poverty rates in the United States, and inflation. I also need to

find some leading experts on the topic and see what they have to say. Ill need to formulate

arguments and find research that can support those arguments for my paper. After I have enough

evidence for my claims, Ill need to actually write the paper. This part will be a long process. I

will write a draft first, and edit it until Im happy with it. Ill have my peers review it and give

me feedback on it, and work some more on it to make it the best paper I can possibly make it.