In September of 2014, the state of Michigan raised the hourly minimum wage from $7.40 to $8.15.

Before the raise in minimum wage, state law allowed minors to be as low as $7.25 per hour, which is the federal minimum wage.

Even though minimum wage was raised 75 cents, minors can still be paid $7.25 an hour while working with adults who make 90 cents more for doing the same amount of work.

Junior Alex Black is employed at Taco Bell and is not pleased with the way he is paid. He makes $7.35 per hour and receives about 15 hours a week.

“It makes me very angry that I get paid less than minimum wage for the work that I do, which is the same that everyone else does,” Black said. “I love Taco Bell, and I love the people I work with. They just pay me less.”

Not only are minors paid less than adults, but during the school year they are also limited to the hours they can work. Students may not work over 24 hours a week while in school.

The only time minors are allowed to work more than 24 hours is during breaks that last from at least Monday to Friday.

The problem with this is that as minimum wage rises, so does the cost of everyday living. Since minimum wage for minors was not raised in correlation with the rest of the state, minors are having a harder time dealing with their finances.

Minors are expected to pay the same 6 percent sales tax as adults, the same amount of fees for parking and traffic violations, and the same price for gas, clothing, food, and basic necessities. This is difficult for minors who have to pay for their own things.

Even though minors do not get discounts in the real world, Mrs. Kim Guest, marketing teacher, believes minors should not have to be paid minimum wage.

“Minors don’t have the same responsibilities that others have,” Guest said. “They don’t have to pay for needs like housing and food.”

Senior Emily Roda is a minor that is employed at Bubba O’Malley’s as a host and is paid $8.15 per hour.

She was previously employed at an animal rescue shelter, where she made $7.40 per hour, before minimum wage was increased.

Roda said that minimum wage has helped her with her expenses.

“It’s easier to pay for things because it gives me bigger paychecks, and with more responsibilities as I get older, it would be harder to pay for things if I only got paid $7.25, which is almost a dollar less per hour,” Roda said.

“I don’t think minors should be limited to just minimum wage because we have things to pay for too, like car insurance and phone bills. If we’re doing more than minimum-wage work, we should be paid more regardless of age.”