NationStates Jolt Archive

Minimum Wage Law

A resolution to reduce income inequality and increase basic welfare.


Category: Social Justice


Strength: Strong


Proposed by: Badgersprite

Description: The United Nations,

APPALLED at the lack of acknowledgement this issue has received from member nations throughout the existence of The United Nations since its founding,

AWARE of the spread and prominence of poverty throughout the world, even in many of our richest nations,

APPALLED at the possibility that corporations and businesses within our member nations, though required under UN Resolution #6 to provide some income, may ridiculously under-value and under-pay any employee at any time without falling under violation of any UN Resolution,

ASSERTING that allowing individuals in member nations the freedom to do so or to suffer under this is grossly immoral and wrong,

BELIEVING the institution of a reasonable Minimum or Basic Wage will lower instances of poverty in UN member nations and will stop the blatant disregard for human rights prominent all over the world and especially in poorer nations where people are more easily exploited by relatively small amounts of money,

HOPING the implementation of such a wage will avoid the creation of vastly under-paid jobs in poorer nations by more economically powerful ones, USING as an example the now infamous Sweat Shop scandals, and will keep children safer from falling victim to international corporations willing to ignore the Child Labour laws for cheap labour, particularly by resorting to moving headquarters to Non-UN nations where there cannot currently be taken legal action against them,

Hereby DEMANDS the creation, enforcement and institution of a Minimum or Basic Wage that all member states and employers are hereby legally obligated to comply with,

One that DEFINES the Minimum or Basic Wage as the essential amount of income needed, when earned by a single person, to feed the average-sized family in the given member nation,

One that URGES all member nations to value individual careers according to their necessity and worth so that none can force hard-working, well-educated, deserving and critical persons, by exploiting this law, to survive on less than they should,

One that REQUIRES that the Minimum or Basic Wage be annually re-evaluated in every nation as the economy, statistics and inflation change what the Minimum Wage should technically be,

One that PROHIBITS the importation into UN member nations of products, goods or services that have been made, extracted etc. by persons being paid less than the relative Minimum Wage amount from nations not bound under the UN's jurisdiction as it is in conflict with what this resolution hopes to achieve,

One that ADHERES to the the requirements and demands of international labour unions, COMPLIES to the demands of these labour unions and hopes to ACHIEVE several of the goals of these labour unions.

APPALLED at the lack of acknowledgement this issue has received from member nations throughout the existence of The United Nations since its foundingActually, it's come up quite a few times.

BELIEVING the institution of a reasonable Minimum or Basic Wage will lower instances of poverty in UN member nationsWhile increasing unemployment as employers are forced to higher fewer workers due to increased payroll costs.

will stop the blatant disregard for human rights prominent all over the world and especially in poorer nationsNo, we'll still view poor people as scum. They suck and, frankly, they smell bad. We'll continue to ignore their rights, regardless of what you make us pay our own citizens.

HOPING the implementation of such a wage will avoid the creation of vastly under-paid jobs in poorer nations by more economically powerful onesWell, this is a pointless clause.

USING as an example the now infamous Sweat Shop scandalsWhat scandals?

Hereby DEMANDS the creation, enforcement and institution of a Minimum or Basic Wage that all member states and employers are hereby legally obligated to comply withThis'll piss off the commies and other nations with 100% tax rates...

One that DEFINES the Minimum or Basic Wage as the essential amount of income needed, when earned by a single person, to feed the average-sized family in the given member nationWhat's "average-sized"? And what quality of food are we talking about here? "Potted Meat Food Product" (http://www.shipbrook.com/jeff/potted.html) is pretty cheap, after all...

One that URGES all member nations to value individual careers according to their necessity and worth so that none can force hard-working, well-educated, deserving and critical persons, by exploiting this law, to survive on less than they should,This is new... "Please don't take advantage of the loopholes!"

One that PROHIBITS the importation into UN member nations of products, goods or services that have been made, extracted etc.I sense a disturbing trend forming here...

One that ADHERES to the the requirements and demands of international labour unions, COMPLIES to the demands of these labour unions and hopes to ACHIEVE several of the goals of these labour unions.Usually the ALL CAPS go at the beginning, not just on IMPORTANT words.

I like my people oppressed thank you very much.

No, we'll still view poor people as scum. They suck and, frankly, they smell bad. We'll continue to ignore their rights, regardless of what you make us pay our own citizens.


However respectable and noble a position this may be, one can not neglect to consider the potential repercussions of a neglected mass. Revolutions tend to be born of the lower classes.


This'll piss off the commies and other nations with 100% tax rates...


For a civilized individual, your methods of addressing your fellows is very crude and ineffective. Unless, of course, your intention is not logical discussion but to be condescending and further a less understanding, less stable, and less thoughtful world environment.


What's "average-sized"? And what quality of food are we talking about here? "Potted Meat Food Product" (http://www.shipbrook.com/jeff/potted.html) is pretty cheap, after all...


Yes, I agree, that is quite vague.


Usually the ALL CAPS go at the beginning, not just on IMPORTANT words.

It is standard for preambulatory and operative clauses to be capitalized.

However respectable and noble a position this may be, one can not neglect to consider the potential repercussions of a neglected mass. Revolutions tend to be born of the lower classes.Melnibone is a decadant nation much smaller than the UN would have you believe. The "poor, neglected masses" are no concern of ours. Especially when they reside in nations other than ours.

For a civilized individual, your methods of addressing your fellows is very crude and ineffective.My statement was still accurate.

Unless, of course, your intention is not logical discussion but to be condescending and further a less understanding, less stable, and less thoughtful world environment. That's an amazing leap, simply from my use of the word "commie". I am amused, however, that you decided to attack my word choice as opposed to my actual statements...

It is standard for preambulatory and operative clauses to be capitalized.The phrase I referenced was neither.

ADHERES (or, more often) ADHERING is normally all caps in resolutions, so Jiva was right. That said, I would suggest to the author to either reorganize the statements such that the capitalized word is at the start of the line or to just leave it in normal lower case, as capitalizing midsentance is annoying.

I'll do a line-by-line analysis in a moment.

Okay. We don't pay our workers anything since we're all androids and money has no value. Even if money had value, I still wouldn't pay anyone anything. I'm opposed. Since I'm a radical conservative democratic technocratic psycho who hates sunshine and candy.

Minimum Wage Law

A resolution to reduce income inequality and increase basic welfare.


Category: Social Justice


Strength: Strong

Significant - strong indicates that we're seeing a revolutionary change in thought (as in, most nations would not be expected to have done it this way), whereas significant means that a commonly accepted principle is getting enforced upon all member states.


Proposed by: Badgersprite

Description: The United Nations,

APPALLED at the lack of acknowledgement this issue has received from member nations throughout the existence of The United Nations since its founding,

As stated earlier - many, many, many attempts but all of them have failed miserably. However, there is only one thus far that I've felt has gone along the right track at trying to address it (can't remember who was working on it). This, unfortunately, does not.

AWARE of the spread and prominence of poverty throughout the world, even in many of our richest nations,

I dislike the term "spread". It indicates its a growing problem, though many members would feel that it is being combatted and, to some degree, effectively combatted.

APPALLED at the possibility that corporations and businesses within our member nations, though required under UN Resolution #6 to provide some income, may ridiculously under-value and under-pay any employee at any time without falling under violation of any UN Resolution,

fine. I think it needs a bit of tweaking (something is bugging me about it), but I can't figure out how.

ASSERTING that allowing individuals in member nations the freedom to do so or to suffer under this is grossly immoral and wrong,

I think the term "immoral" covers "wrong". Perhaps "should be stopped" (wrong and immoral only indicate a condemnation, should be stopped calls for active action against).

BELIEVING the institution of a reasonable Minimum or Basic Wage will lower instances of poverty in UN member nations and will stop the blatant disregard for human rights prominent all over the world and especially in poorer nations where people are more easily exploited by relatively small amounts of money,

Depends on how much that money is relative to the people in their society. For example, $5 bucks in one nation might make you a millionaire in another. I would end that line at "world"

HOPING the implementation of such a wage will avoid the creation of vastly under-paid jobs in poorer nations by more economically powerful ones, USING as an example the now infamous Sweat Shop scandals, and will keep children safer from falling victim to international corporations willing to ignore the Child Labour laws for cheap labour, particularly by resorting to moving headquarters to Non-UN nations where there cannot currently be taken legal action against them,

Ok, this line is so riddled with inaccuracies it isn't funny.
1) It doesn't matter where they're headquartered. If they are hiring children in a member country, then they are violating resolutions can action is taken against them by the nation that the crime is being committed in, by the urging of the UN Gnomes. If they hire children and have them work outside of a UN member nation, absolutely nothing can happen and this resolution will change shit all.
2) While most sweat shops are underpaid still, if you just double they're wage, compared to most industrialized countries, it would be an abhorent wage, but in that nation it would be fair - if not better than fair.

I would dump the entire line. It is just asking to be broiled on a fluffy "you don't understand economics" stick.

Hereby DEMANDS the creation, enforcement and institution of a Minimum or Basic Wage that all member states and employers are hereby legally obligated to comply with,

Drop Hereby

One that DEFINES the Minimum or Basic Wage as the essential amount of income needed, when earned by a single person, to feed the average-sized family in the given member nation,

Drop "One that".

Wow, aren't you generous. They'll have enough to eat as they sit on the streets wearing rags in the dead of winter.

One that URGES all member nations to value individual careers according to their necessity and worth so that none can force hard-working, well-educated, deserving and critical persons, by exploiting this law, to survive on less than they should,

Um.....considering the mandatory following of UN resolutions.....this line is irrelevant.

One that REQUIRES that the Minimum or Basic Wage be annually re-evaluated in every nation as the economy, statistics and inflation change what the Minimum Wage should technically be,

Annually? I suppose, though I personally dislike it. (I'd prefer every 5 years....)

Drop "One that"

One that PROHIBITS the importation into UN member nations of products, goods or services that have been made, extracted etc. by persons being paid less than the relative Minimum Wage amount from nations not bound under the UN's jurisdiction as it is in conflict with what this resolution hopes to achieve

Even if you don't follow any of my other "drop" suggestions, DEFINATELY drop "One that" this time - because it makes this entire sentence become a big "WTF?"

drop "into UN member nations"

etc is always a bad term to have in a resolution, but I can't think of a good summary to replace it with.

End the line at jurisdiction.

I'm certain that this will get shot down as metagaming, but we'll see what the mods think.

One that ADHERES to the the requirements and demands of international labour unions, COMPLIES to the demands of these labour unions and hopes to ACHIEVE several of the goals of these labour unions.

Just drop. There's no logic to the sentence, nor logical reason to include it. You're only building up the number of enemies you have.