Johnny is a hard worker. He works 40 hours a week. He earns $7.25 an hour, which is the minimum wage paid in his state. Johnny was excited to learn that his hourly wage would soon increase to $10 an hour. However, Johnny does not realize that once the minimum wage increases, the price of food and other items necessary for survival will also increase. For example, Johnny now makes $7.25 per hour and pays $3.25 per gallon for milk, but once the wage increase takes effect, he will pay $4 per gallon. Johnny was also told that due to the increase in the price of goods, business was slow and his hours would now be reduced to 30 hours per week. Johnny is not so happy now. Minimum wage increases aren't always a good thing, because businesses have to raise prices of goods, costing consumers more. When forming an opinion about a federally mandated minimum wage, you may need to look at it one of two ways. One is the short-term effect and the other is the long-term effect. Some will say that in the long term, this will promote job growth. If people make more money, they spend more money. However, will the short-term effects cause too much damage before the long-term effects occur? Again, this is what you need to consider before forming an opinion on whether to raise the federally mandated minimum wage. According to NFIB.COM VIDEO ROOM, “unions want large employers to raise the federally mandated minimum wage to fifteen dollars an hour. President Obama has said he would support an increase to nine dollars an hour. Congress imposed a middle ground compromise of ten dollars and ten cents per hour. They also state that “ninety percent of American businesses have fewer than twenty employees.” the minimum of $3.09 per hour at the end of 1948 to a maximum of $8.67 per hour in 1968. The current minimum wage buys more than the minimum wage did done historically, but it remains more than a dollar an hour below its historical level. For or against an increase in the mandatory minimum wage at the federal level, one thing is certain, we all want what is best for our country. This country was founded on “change.” However, change is sometimes a good thing and sometimes a bad thing. We can hope that if this increase is finalized, it will lift many Americans out of poverty. I myself am not in favor of this increase. I feel like the downsides outweigh the upside and too much is left to chance. Are we allowed to have the cake and eat it too, or will America cut off its nose despite its face ??