COVID Changes Holiday Traditions
By Zach Lichter
Every year, we have expectations of what the holidays should be like. An example would be that one relative who always hosts, one who always cooks, a group of relatives who flies in every year and many other traditions that make us feel complete at the end of each year. Like a lot of other things, that’s not the case for 2020, which has altered the way we celebrate many holidays.
This year many people were celebrating Thanksgiving differently than in the past.
“We all sat in different places of the house, some sat in the dining room,” said Wall High School senior Hunter Pappas. “Other people sat in the living room and some sat outside on the back patio.”
State officials continue to advise people to stay home after they were saying that there could be an increase in coronavirus cases after Thanksgiving. In New Jersey, indoor gatherings were limited to 10 people or less. Everyone has to wear masks and remain six feet apart. That means families with a lot of people either have the choice of celebrating holiday gatherings outside -- limiting the number of people they have over before you even consider the weather -- or not celebrating at all.
For some families, Thanksgiving remained the same. If you had a small family, you were able to have a relatively-routine dinner.
“We had a normal Thanksgiving dinner and we sat at the dining room table with my cousins, aunt and uncle,” said Wall senior Andrew Schilpp. “We knew our family was safe, so we let them do their own thing like we usually would.”
That may have not been the case for some people. Some families have not felt comfortable to get together. Maybe a relative or two who live in another state decided to stay home for Thanksgiving so they wouldn’t have to quarantine for two weeks.
One of the biggest concerns coming into the holiday season is having college students come home. Many colleges were requiring students to take a COVID test before going home and some parents may have had their children to get tested regardless of whether the college was requiring it or not. A lot of colleges had their students finish the semester virtually and will not return until January.
“My brother did have to take precautions when he came home,” Pappas said. “He had to quarantine for two weeks because Massachusetts (where Pappas´s brother attends Anna Maria College in Paxton, Mass.) is a quarantine zone.”
The 2020 holidays will definitely be remembered for a very long time and talked about for many generations. But we will get through this pandemic and the “new normal” is only temporary.
Every year, we have expectations of what the holidays should be like. An example would be that one relative who always hosts, one who always cooks, a group of relatives who flies in every year and many other traditions that make us feel complete at the end of each year. Like a lot of other things, that’s not the case for 2020, which has altered the way we celebrate many holidays.
This year many people were celebrating Thanksgiving differently than in the past.
“We all sat in different places of the house, some sat in the dining room,” said Wall High School senior Hunter Pappas. “Other people sat in the living room and some sat outside on the back patio.”
State officials continue to advise people to stay home after they were saying that there could be an increase in coronavirus cases after Thanksgiving. In New Jersey, indoor gatherings were limited to 10 people or less. Everyone has to wear masks and remain six feet apart. That means families with a lot of people either have the choice of celebrating holiday gatherings outside -- limiting the number of people they have over before you even consider the weather -- or not celebrating at all.
For some families, Thanksgiving remained the same. If you had a small family, you were able to have a relatively-routine dinner.
“We had a normal Thanksgiving dinner and we sat at the dining room table with my cousins, aunt and uncle,” said Wall senior Andrew Schilpp. “We knew our family was safe, so we let them do their own thing like we usually would.”
That may have not been the case for some people. Some families have not felt comfortable to get together. Maybe a relative or two who live in another state decided to stay home for Thanksgiving so they wouldn’t have to quarantine for two weeks.
One of the biggest concerns coming into the holiday season is having college students come home. Many colleges were requiring students to take a COVID test before going home and some parents may have had their children to get tested regardless of whether the college was requiring it or not. A lot of colleges had their students finish the semester virtually and will not return until January.
“My brother did have to take precautions when he came home,” Pappas said. “He had to quarantine for two weeks because Massachusetts (where Pappas´s brother attends Anna Maria College in Paxton, Mass.) is a quarantine zone.”
The 2020 holidays will definitely be remembered for a very long time and talked about for many generations. But we will get through this pandemic and the “new normal” is only temporary.
Minimum Wage Increase Changes the Landscape for Summer Jobs
By Ryan Sy
The minimum wage has been a hot button issue for many years that politician refuses to act on because of the backlash they could receive. New Jersey, however, recently implemented a law to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour. The change affects everyone positively and negatively in more ways than someone might think.
Having a high wage is good for people who work minimum-wage jobs but will definitely affect teens and people who have salaried jobs in up charges in groceries, gym memberships and businesses that employs workers that hire below $15 per hour. The signs that say “now hiring” and “positions available” might start going away since each worker, by law, must make $15 per hour by law by 2024.
Teens looking for a part-time job might get turned away more since there's restrictions on the amount of hours they can work and it would require businesses to hire more staff and hurt their bottom lines. The consumers might also be forced to pay with higher prices.
“Even though businesses have not been hit by this yet, they are using it as an excuse to raise prices,” said Mrs. Teresa Rose, the Advanced Placement macroeconomics teacher at Wall High School. “I also think it might drive more jobs underground because if people are willing to work for less than that and, if firms are able to pay less, than that it may drive more jobs there.”
Conversely, people will see their paychecks get fatter and, for those living near or under the poverty line who work minimum-wage jobs, the bill could get them over the hump into the middle or working class. That would likely decrease the amount of people living in poverty as well across the state.
Where is all of the extra funding going to come from? It is going to come out of every single New Jersey resident’s pockets because of the likely raise in prices at supermarkets and stores and pretty much every single business. Since New Jersey is already one of the most-expensive states to live in, it will become more and more expensive with the bill’s passage.
“This is a huge step forward for more than a million workers,” said Governor Phil Murphy during his press conference when the bill was signed on Feb. 4, and also stated it is the “opportunity to join the middle class.”
Democratic politicians believe the new minimum wage will improve the economy because it will increase spending because there is more money in the pockets of employees. Republican politicians, however, are on record that raising the minimum wage will put the burden on salaried middle-class workers and families since the cost of living will increase to make up for the increase in wages.
For a car to go, there must be gas in the tank. Raising the minimum wage will put more fuel in the tank and the car will go longer and it will catch up to the other cars. That is the Democratic view of the situation. The Republicans feel while more fuel will be in the cars of minimum-wage workers, all of the other workers will have less fuel and there would be people with a car without fuel to power it, which symbolizes the increase in unemployment.
Some believe that the raising of the minimum wage could hurt the economy and commerce. Others feel that it will hurt small businesses and decrease the amount of jobs.
The Jersey Shore is where most of residents go in the summer to enjoy the beaches. Many of the people employed are teenagers. With the raise in wages, beaches might not hire as many staff because of the wage hike and beach badges might increase to make up for the extra money employees are taking home.
“The effects of a higher minimum wage could cause small business owners to exorbitantly jack up their prices of their products to make up for the money going towards wages,” said Wall junior Ava Maltzman. “Raising the minimum wage from $8.75 to $10 per hour makes a big difference for someone like myself who works part time at a small business, family-owned business. Over time,that extra $1.25 per hour will allow me to save up for a car and other expenses.”
New Jersey is not the first state to pass this piece of legislature. It joins California, Massachusetts and New York with the increase.
The change in the minimum wage is one that will alter the landscape of the state. But the question will loom for many residents of New Jersey who might ask themselves, “why should I go to college and come out with a bunch of debt when I could be able to get a job starting at $15 per hour?” It raises a fair point, increasing the minimum wage put New Jersey residents on more of an even playing field when it comes to wages. In 2024, someone who works full time, 40 hours a week, will earn $31,200 per year before taxes. For a teacher in East Newark, their average salary is about $48,424. On top of that, most students leave college with debt so does it make sense to go to college for certain professions that pay nearly the same in the grand scheme of things.
The new minimum wage is now a reality in New Jersey. It is not going away, but the prices on the consumers’ shopping bills might tell a different story. The change might hurt New Jersey more than help due to all of the moving parts that are involved with this decision.
The minimum wage has been a hot button issue for many years that politician refuses to act on because of the backlash they could receive. New Jersey, however, recently implemented a law to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour. The change affects everyone positively and negatively in more ways than someone might think.
Having a high wage is good for people who work minimum-wage jobs but will definitely affect teens and people who have salaried jobs in up charges in groceries, gym memberships and businesses that employs workers that hire below $15 per hour. The signs that say “now hiring” and “positions available” might start going away since each worker, by law, must make $15 per hour by law by 2024.
Teens looking for a part-time job might get turned away more since there's restrictions on the amount of hours they can work and it would require businesses to hire more staff and hurt their bottom lines. The consumers might also be forced to pay with higher prices.
“Even though businesses have not been hit by this yet, they are using it as an excuse to raise prices,” said Mrs. Teresa Rose, the Advanced Placement macroeconomics teacher at Wall High School. “I also think it might drive more jobs underground because if people are willing to work for less than that and, if firms are able to pay less, than that it may drive more jobs there.”
Conversely, people will see their paychecks get fatter and, for those living near or under the poverty line who work minimum-wage jobs, the bill could get them over the hump into the middle or working class. That would likely decrease the amount of people living in poverty as well across the state.
Where is all of the extra funding going to come from? It is going to come out of every single New Jersey resident’s pockets because of the likely raise in prices at supermarkets and stores and pretty much every single business. Since New Jersey is already one of the most-expensive states to live in, it will become more and more expensive with the bill’s passage.
“This is a huge step forward for more than a million workers,” said Governor Phil Murphy during his press conference when the bill was signed on Feb. 4, and also stated it is the “opportunity to join the middle class.”
Democratic politicians believe the new minimum wage will improve the economy because it will increase spending because there is more money in the pockets of employees. Republican politicians, however, are on record that raising the minimum wage will put the burden on salaried middle-class workers and families since the cost of living will increase to make up for the increase in wages.
For a car to go, there must be gas in the tank. Raising the minimum wage will put more fuel in the tank and the car will go longer and it will catch up to the other cars. That is the Democratic view of the situation. The Republicans feel while more fuel will be in the cars of minimum-wage workers, all of the other workers will have less fuel and there would be people with a car without fuel to power it, which symbolizes the increase in unemployment.
Some believe that the raising of the minimum wage could hurt the economy and commerce. Others feel that it will hurt small businesses and decrease the amount of jobs.
The Jersey Shore is where most of residents go in the summer to enjoy the beaches. Many of the people employed are teenagers. With the raise in wages, beaches might not hire as many staff because of the wage hike and beach badges might increase to make up for the extra money employees are taking home.
“The effects of a higher minimum wage could cause small business owners to exorbitantly jack up their prices of their products to make up for the money going towards wages,” said Wall junior Ava Maltzman. “Raising the minimum wage from $8.75 to $10 per hour makes a big difference for someone like myself who works part time at a small business, family-owned business. Over time,that extra $1.25 per hour will allow me to save up for a car and other expenses.”
New Jersey is not the first state to pass this piece of legislature. It joins California, Massachusetts and New York with the increase.
The change in the minimum wage is one that will alter the landscape of the state. But the question will loom for many residents of New Jersey who might ask themselves, “why should I go to college and come out with a bunch of debt when I could be able to get a job starting at $15 per hour?” It raises a fair point, increasing the minimum wage put New Jersey residents on more of an even playing field when it comes to wages. In 2024, someone who works full time, 40 hours a week, will earn $31,200 per year before taxes. For a teacher in East Newark, their average salary is about $48,424. On top of that, most students leave college with debt so does it make sense to go to college for certain professions that pay nearly the same in the grand scheme of things.
The new minimum wage is now a reality in New Jersey. It is not going away, but the prices on the consumers’ shopping bills might tell a different story. The change might hurt New Jersey more than help due to all of the moving parts that are involved with this decision.
