What if you are being paid $4.25 at the age of 18 and 19? It's not against the law because as long as you are under the age of 20 they can pay you as low as $4.25. Now that is just unfair, getting paid under the minimum wage. Being paid under the minimum wage should be against the law.

My first reason why teens should be paid more is because they work hard at their job. People who have a job under the age of 20 are being paid below minimum wage but are working hard. Most teens after school go to work. They come home tired and don't have time to do homework. It's not worth getting paid $4.25 and failing your classes. When working, anyone doesn't have time to come home and do homework, unless you want to stay up late at night. But in doing that, you won't get your healthy sleeping hours. An employee can pay a teen $4.25 until his/her first 90 days are over. (but getting pay $4.25 you don't want to wait that long within 2 weeks by getting pay that much you want to quit already.) Teens are happy that they got a job, but once they figure out that they are being paid below the minimum wage you already decided that you're quitting the next month.

My second reason is by not getting paid the minimum wage, people will quit earlier normal. Employer pays you $4.25, so in case you quit early, they wouldn't have wasted a lot of money on you. Of course by not getting paid better, they'll quit earlier, but if you pay them $6.55, the minimum wage, indeed they will stay much longer. Most people will just go find a new job that can and will pay better and quit their old job. When that happens some managers will be mad and sometimes they just say, 'Ok this is your last day. You don't have to do your 2 weeks.' Also, by not doing the 2 weeks notice, you'll get a bad record and other jobs available wouldn't want to hire you.

My third reason is a teen may have a family to support. $4.25 is not going to help that teen at all. Getting $4.25 an hour is not enough for a family to get food, diapers, clothing, and pay the house bills. An option some teens consider is dropping out of school and going to work everyday from morning to night. That may help, but graduating from school is also very important. People need their high school diploma and college if want to have a good life and want to find a good career.

Being paid $4.25 should be against the law. Do you want to get $4.25 an hour for your first 90 days at work and then after the 90 days get a raise? No, you don't. You'd probably quit before reaching that 90 days because of the poor money you are making. People say getting money is better than getting nothing. I know that is true, but the more you work, the more you will realize that working hard everyday, every night is not worth it for $4.25.


Work citied
"Employee Rights" 1 June 2007. U.S. Department of Labor. 6 Feb. 2009 .