Hello. I am a woman working in LA. Life in this city, known as the City of Angels, appears glamorous on the surface, but in reality, it feels like a tightrope walk every day between the cost of living and wages.

When I see the price of a Starbucks coffee I buy on my way to work or the receipt from Trader Joe's after work, I can't help but sigh. Therefore, the discussion about minimum wage, which is currently a hot topic in the U.S., is not just news to me but a matter of daily life.

The minimum wage varies greatly across states due to different laws and regulations. California, where I live, is one of the states with the highest wages in the U.S., exceeding $16 per hour as of 2026, and the fast-food industry has already entered the $20 era. Washington and New York are experiencing similar trends. In contrast, many states like Texas and several in the South still hover around $7.25, resulting in more than double the difference within the same country.

Hearing about wage increases is always pleasant. The logic that when salaries rise, people spend more and the economy revives is something everyone can agree on. However, the reality is not that simple. A rapid increase in wages can lead to rising prices, and the quality of employment may worsen as a side effect.

Just looking at the restaurants in LA's Koreatown makes this clear. Owners who cannot bear the burden of labor costs are reducing the number of serving staff and introducing kiosks, while menu prices are rising quickly. Ultimately, even if salaries increase slightly, the cost of meals rises more significantly, making it feel like the actual money available to spend does not increase or even decreases. If wages are raised without preparation, small business owners are pushed to the brink, and the result comes back to workers in the form of job losses.

The commonality among countries that have successfully raised wages is that they did not stop at simply giving more money. They actively invested in education and skills training to enhance worker productivity, creating an environment where businesses could generate more profits through innovation. In other words, they increased both wages and productivity simultaneously.

On the other hand, countries that raised wages solely for political popularity without considering economic structure experienced aftereffects such as soaring prices and rising unemployment. Wages should ultimately be determined based on economic value that both the giver and receiver can agree upon.

My thoughts, standing at a midpoint in my career, are clear. Minimum wage should not be so low that it undermines a decent living, but raising it too rapidly beyond what the market can bear also leads to unhappiness for everyone. What matters is not the number of wages, but the foundational strength that allows the economy to operate stably even after paying those wages.

Ultimately, there is only one answer. Creating a healthy structure where businesses grow and generate profits, and those results fairly return to workers. The most realistic solution is not forced increases, but gradually raising wages through solid growth.

Today, as I noticed the deepening frown lines of my favorite café owner, I felt again that the true richness of our society does not come from political number games, but from the basic principle of the economy where everyone creates value based on their hard work. And I must not forget that the core of this is ultimately productivity.