Resources | Raise the wage! Greensboro, NC Minimum Wage Campaign

Resources...

In this video documentary, community members are asked questions about the impacts of raising the minimum wage. The documentary was created in the spring of 2008 when the local minimum wage campaign had $9.36 as its target.



The following seven essays provide arguments for raising the minimum-wage in Greensboro. The essays examine life on a minimum-wage job as well as provide examples of successful wage increases in both the United States and abroad. They weigh arguments for and against a wage increase and also present moral arguments and reasons for an increase. They were written by students in the Minimum Wage Issue Group of the inter-institutional and interdisciplinary course Reclaiming Democracy: Dialogue, Decision Making and Community Action. The essays were written in the spring semester 2008 when the local minimum wage campaign had $9.36 as its target.


  1. Introduction by Nicole Lambelet offers a broad perspective on the minimum wage and invites you to read the case to be made for raising it.

  2. How Far the Money Goes by Ben Roberts discusses how hard it is to live on the current minimum wage.

  3. Malcolm Kenton's Learning from Others: The Causes and Effects of Successful City Minimum Wage Ordinances thoughtfully analyzes the success and economic consequences for businesses of the Albuquerque and Santa Fe wage ordinances.

  4. Globalization and Wages in Europe by David Reed describes the EU nations' positive experiences with minimum wages.

  5. Marnie Thompson's Can Greensboro afford to raise the minimum wage to $9.36/hour? Yes! presents a careful analysis of the consequences of a citywide wage increase.

  6. Raising Minimum Wage: Arguments For and Against by Evelyn Parks lays out some the of the commonly-heard arguments against a minimum wage and offers some counter arguments.

  7. Jim Boyett's A Brief History of the Minimum Wage Campaign and Why It is Important to Raise the Minimum Wage in Greensboro tells the story of the minimum wage campaign in Greensboro while providing a broader context for the need for a minimum wage.