Where is the wage?

Dear Mr./ Mrs. President,

In the U.S the cost for living has skyrocketed. Everything from gas to food has increased in price. But yet for some reason the workers are not making any more money. With companies making millions of dollars, how come the actual people doing the work barely make anything. According to CBS news “Currently as of Jan 2016 the average minimum wage in the U.S is $7.25”. Assuming you work 40 hours a week that adds up to about $1,160 per month. But with the average cost for rent a month being $1,200 a month how are these workers supposed to pay for rent, food, insurance, and many other things? It’s not possible. Us teens are typically the ones making this little and we are just starting our adult life and need all the support that we can get. Why are we making it so hard on those who are just trying to grow up?

Unfortunately, this can lead lots of young adults to go down the wrong path. Many people are unable to pay their expenses even though they have a full time job. This leads them to turn to drug dealing and crime in order to make ends meet. Almost everyone that is either selling drugs or stealing is in it for the money. But if we just increased how much money they earned at their job, it would save us Billions of dollars in paying for the crimes they commit. Also many lives would be saved due to the decrease in crime. It is true that this would cause business owners to make less money but by paying someone more, in most cases will lead that person to become a better worker. This can increase the company's productivity and in turn make the company more money.

Us young people are the future of this country and if we can’t make it through the hardest years of our lives then there will be no future at all. Only a couple more dollars an hour can make a huge difference and in many cases can be the decider between success and failure.

Sincerely, Matt O.