As a college student (and a journalist in general), the minimum wage is something that I am very familiar with. I have worked many such jobs, mostly in the restaurant industry, where the minimum for waitstaff lingers somewhere around $2.60 per hour. Don’t worry, I don’t spend it all in one place.

So it was pretty interesting to hear that President Barack Obama is suggesting raising the federal minimum wage to $9 per hour, which is higher than the minimum wage in every state except Washington. In some states, like my home state of New York, that means workers who depend on that hourly pay check will be receiving $1.50 more per hour. That really adds up and can make a difference for those counting pennies – not just college students but poor families and recent graduates who are just starting out.

According to the Washington Post’s Wonkblog, the minimum wage is as low as its been in 50 years, with prices adjusted for inflation. Back in the 1960s, people were making the equivalent of $10 an hour.

For the average middle-class youngster looking to make some extra lunch money, an increase in minimum wage could even help them put some of that money away for college.

While many organizations, such as The London School of Economics, suggest that the increase in wage will not help unemployment, the government should give those working on minimum wage a raise. It’s hard out there, and people are struggling. I see everyday in my own bank account how hard life can be when you just cannot make ends meet. I’m not even really struggling.

I am fortunate enough to have parents who would never let me end up on the street or something dramatic like that, but for those in a place like Minnesota, where the minimum wage is just a smidge over $6, that extra money could really go far. The Washington Post Wonkblog states that it is less cost-effective to increase the wage than to just give struggling families money, but I think that the extra cash is more important than something akin to food stamps or any other government aid.

Putting the money in the hands of those who need it gives them the freedom to learn how to use their money responsibly, or at least I hope it could. I am not sure how this bill proposal would affect food service industry workers such as myself, and I don’t care if it doesn’t help me. I’ll make it work; there are others that need the money more than I do.

-Lana Lagomarsini can be reached at [email protected]