Adding a federally mandated cost in the form of increased minimum wage would lead to longer unemployment, reduced work hours or hiring, and increased layoffs for low-wage workers as businesses balance reduced revenues and increased costs.

• It can disrupt the economic system. Considering the demand and supply where the economy is at equilibrium, minimum wage functions similarly to a price floor.
• It can hurt the poor.
• It can create unemployment.
• It does not offer personal-growth opportunities.

The disadvantages of a national minimum wage: A high minimum wage can cause price inflation as firms pass on the higher wages in higher prices. Falling employment, as demand contracts, and rising unemployment as supply extends.

List of Disadvantages of Minimum Wage. 1. It can disrupt the economic system. Imposing a higher wage level than the equilibrium would disrupt the price mechanism, which means that the market will not be able to clear, seeing workers not being able to find work.

Santa Rosa, California: As of July 2020, the minimum wage is $15 for large businesses (those with 26 or more employees) and $14 for small businesses. It will be $15 for all employees in January 2021.

The federal minimum wage has stagnated at $7.25 an hour since 2009. For most people, working for minimum wage does not give them a living wage. Many states and cities have a higher minimum wage in place — in some cases more than double — but workers still struggle to make ends meet.

Live Frugally To cover the cost of living on minimum wage, it’s best to keep expenses as low as possible. Look for deals at the supermarket, and preferably at a discount grocer. Use loyalty cards and coupons, and if you have kids, look into available free or low-cost lunch programs.

But can someone actually live on $11 an hour? In some markets, the answer is yes, but in many parts of the country, $11 is simply not enough to provide basic needs such as housing, food, clothing, and healthcare.

In fact, the average minimum wage worker in the U.S. would need to work almost 97 hours per week to afford a fair market rate two-bedroom and 79 hours per week to afford a one-bedroom, NLIHC calculates. That’s well over two full-time jobs just to be able to afford a two-bedroom rental.

Yes, if you live in an area where the cost of living is low, you work sufficient hours, and you have minimal cost of lodging. You may also be eligible for food stamps. So, if you are willing to live a very limited lifestyle, and are in an area where you can get to work with no car, you probably can.

Assuming 40 hours a week, that equals 2,080 hours in a year. Your annual salary of $35,000 would end up being about $16.83 per hour.

It’s quite possible to live well on $30,000 per year if you’re debt-free, but what if you have debt? I would recommend trying to pay it off as quickly as possible with the debt snowball approach. Cut your expenses as much as you can and put the amount you save toward debt each month.