Stakeholder #2

Walmart. "Walmart Shoppers Notice Signs Promoting Everyday Low Prices Around the Store"
05/03/11 via Flickr. Attribution 2.0 Generic License.

Although the businesses are the direct recipients of this change, there are other groups that are playing into this controversy. There are others that are affected by this historical bill.

Description

An obvious stakeholder in this controversy of raising the minimum wage in Seattle to fifteen dollars an hour is the consumer. The Consumer is ultimately responsible for making this increase in the minimum wage work. If they are willing to pay the extra price for their products in order to offer their fellow citizen a higher wage, then it will work. If they stop shopping at their local businesses because of the higher prices, then the economy of Seattle will struggle. They may start shopping online or in surrounding towns. If these prices go up too much, then the consumer may be driven away. If businesses are dedicated to keeping their prices steady, then they may need to fire some employees. Either way it will be a hard transition period for businesses and the scale of cutbacks they must make depends on the consumer. Many services provided by businesses that employ workers at minimum wage are “in-person services”. They are beauty salons, grocery stores, and restaurants. Therefore, consumers are interacted with personally and will effect the Seattle economy directly. If consumers continue to visit businesses in Seattle consistently, then Seattle will most likely be able to survive this massive change.

Three Claims

1.    The first claim that one consumer makes about the minimum wage increase is, “I think it’s a bad idea. You have to learn some trade or skills before you get paid.” This consumer believes that many of the workers that will get an increase in pay deserve to get paid more after they prove themselves. They should not get thrown into an entry level job and be earning that much money right away.

2.    The second claim that another consumer makes is, “Yes I would pay more.” This consumer feels that it is worth paying more in order for his fellow citizen to make a more substantial wage.

3.    The third claim that a final consumer makes is, “…more often than not, states with high minimum wages LEAD the country in job growth.” This consumer is providing the facts that it is actually a good idea for cities and states to increase their minimum wage. He is stating that if they do this, there is a good chance that their businesses will perform well.

Credibility

These claims are valid. They came straight from the mouth of the consumer and truly express how they feel, even though there is no one opinion. There are claims that the individual consumer would continue to go out and shop consistently even with higher prices and there are claims that the minimum wage should not be increased because they cannot support the businesses due to the increased expense and resulting lower profits. The third claim, though, is only partially valid. Of the 11 states that increased their minimum wage in 2014, 6 states’ had their unemployment rates decrease while 5 had theirs increase. These claims carry a lot of weight in this controversy because the way that the consumer performs is how the success of the raised minimum wage is measured. They are the ones who pay the businesses which, in turn, pay their workers.

Other Stakeholders

These are unique claims. No other stakeholder has the power or relevance that the consumer does. These are the claims that only the consumer can make because they are the only ones in the powerful position of deciding how and where to buy. What they have in common with business owners is that they both determine how many employees are needed to make the business work profitably and therefore how many jobs might be cut. The stakeholder consumers have the least in common with are workers. The reason for this is because the consumer has most of the power in this controversy and the worker has almost no power. The consumer drives the economy and the workers receive the results, whether good or bad.