Is Minimum Wage Enough?

[Elite4woolfy]

Here was one of the questions I thought of; is minimum wage enough?

In one way, people who work at McDonald's shouldn't get the same amount of money as, say, a professionally trained doctor, but at the same time, no one should have to suffer(?)

So, go at it!

 

[chess-z]

Minimum wage is enough, if it were a living wage, unlike the current minimum wage we currently have. I would like to have an ideal communist society, but since that's pretty much unattainable, I gotta settle for $15 an hour.

 

[ThePokemonmaster11]

No, the cost of living has increased over time and corporations have started to run their companies like Scrooge. However, raising the wage to a set amount would be a disaster because it discourages employment of new workers. Are you going to pay someone new to the job $15?

I'd like to see corporations that take intuitive to reward employees that have stuck with the company and work hard. Good luck obtaining that outside of say, Hobby Lobby.

 

[Forretress Fan]

Remember minimum wage is intended only for those with No Education, No Experience or No Training. (Eastern Hemisphere calls them NEETs).

When I worked at Panera Bread and made $7.25 a hour and worked maybe 20-30 hours a week during High school, I made off with about $300-350 per biweekly paycheck (Back in 2011-2012)

I live in TN, a decently low cost of living state. Minimum wage is at a good rate here. If you don't like the wage, switch jobs. Manual jobs pay at least $10 a hour. Trade jobs are normally $15-$20 a hour unless you run your own business.

I do think in states with higher cost of living, the state should decide on a fair minimum wage rate. If we make a set minimum wage rate nationwide, we are doomed for inflation and the period of us adjusting to the cost of living (I.E. If the minimum a worker makes it $15 compared to $7.25, then Milk that say costed $2.50 would have to raise comparatively to the raise in minimum wage and thus cost of living).

But I am a little biased about people not pursuing to become greater versions of yourself. When I worked at Panera Bread, I had two coworkers (28 and 31) who bragged about making $8.75 after working 5+ years there and still lived at home and were just waiting for Management to make then Managers. (These two coworkers were the lazy older staff everyplace has but the Mgmt does not approve but won't fire because they'll do any shift and know all the positions).

 

[ThePokemonmaster11]

Remember minimum wage is intended only for those with No Education, No Experience or No Training. (Eastern Hemisphere calls them NEETs).

When I worked at Panera Bread and made $7.25 a hour and worked maybe 20-30 hours a week during High school, I made off with about $300-350 per biweekly paycheck (Back in 2011-2012)

I live in TN, a decently low cost of living state. Minimum wage is at a good rate here. If you don't like the wage, switch jobs. Manual jobs pay at least $10 a hour. Trade jobs are normally $15-$20 a hour unless you run your own business.

I do think in states with higher cost of living, the state should decide on a fair minimum wage rate. If we make a set minimum wage rate nationwide, we are doomed for inflation and the period of us adjusting to the cost of living (I.E. If the minimum a worker makes it $15 compared to $7.25, then Milk that say costed $2.50 would have to raise comparatively to the raise in minimum wage and thus cost of living).

But I am a little biased about people not pursuing to become greater versions of yourself. When I worked at Panera Bread, I had two coworkers (28 and 31) who bragged about making $8.75 after working 5+ years there and still lived at home and were just waiting for Management to make then Managers. (These two coworkers were the lazy older staff everyplace has but the Mgmt does not approve but won't fire because they'll do any shift and know all the positions).

Post of the day folks, a witty and well thought out answer. I couldn't agree with this more.

 

[MechanisticMoth]

I believe in the living wage wherever you live. $15 one place (Seattle) can only take you so far compared to $15 at another place (let's say Havre, Montana). I feel like the national level should be set higher (let's say $11-12 but preferably $15) with states making the final decision.

I do have to counter the argument that things will increase in price at grocery stores or something along those lines at wherever. More money for people increases the amount they spend and contribute back to the economy. Raising minimum wages actually improves the economies of different cities and states rather than have a negative impact. Sure, your landscaping prices might go up for a person running a local business, but, overall, it's a good thing. States could also stipulate something along the lines of, if your business makes below $x, you can pay your employees a little bit less.

And, one last thing about the argument that someone at McDonald's makes $15 in Seattle and another person makes $14 in a rural town in Texas as an emergency technician or something. True, that Texas person went to more school and what not, but that person lives in a place with a lower cost of living. Why should we turn on each other (the McDonald's worker) when we should be turning on our employers and demanding raises? By turning on the people of the lower to middle class, we are drawing the focus away from the upper class as their wages gain exponentially while the lower to middle's gain modestly. Focus on the root of the problem rather than comparing ourselves to each other.

 

[Baba Yaga]

No, not really. There's not a single state in the union anymore where you can provide for yourself working full time hours on the federal minimum of 7.25 an hour.

https://mic.com/articles/120428/1-m...-to-rent-an-apartment-in-any-state#.NHmRNAE8w

In our economy your options are 1) Work yourself into an early grave with two jobs that likely have little room for advancement 2) Live with your parents 3) Split rent between roommates.

There are problems with all three though that make room for an incredible amount of economic anxiety. You can't work someone 60 hours a week and not expect their performance to suffer. It's common place for retailers in my area to do this and then simply hire fresh blood once they've worked their current hires to the breaking point. Not everyone has their parents to fall back on. Roommates are unreliable, and you have to replace them quickly if they decide to move.

I'm lucky in that the house I live in and the cars we own don't require payments anymore, otherwise we would really be struggling. I really don't think people understand the staggering amount of people that are coasting the razor thin line of staying in the rat race and being homeless. I also really hate it when people say "Oh, well you can just get another job" That's bullshit. I worked retail for five years before I was finally able to break into the field of healthcare. In those five years I applied at banks, insurance companies, factories, and other such "good" non college educated jobs and didn't receive anything in return. It makes me angry because you're basically saying that poor people are just too lazy or too stupid to work themselves out of their own situation, and the fact you're not struggling has something to do with your own inherent superiority, smarts, and resourcefulness. Yeah, **** that. I'm definitely not against trade schools, I actually think they're a much more efficient way of achieving economic security than university; I just hate when people make it out to be like it's a walk in the park. Like people even have the time and mental energies to pursue a vocation when they're already throwing in 60 hours a week? Most of the people I know that are in the same economic class as me that pull off graduating from college or trade school have really strong social support networks. I mean if you plowed right through uni with an engineering degree straight into a 75,000 dollar a year job, paying rent by yourself on minimum wage, without help from family or friends through the sheer power of your indomitable will, more power to you. You're a greater person than I, but this kind of fantastical ubermuensh is few and far between.

I really want the people that are saying "Oh just do this, do that" to just sit down a second and seriously contemplate their privileges. Do you still have your parents? Do they have good jobs? Do you have children or people that you're responsible for? Do you have trouble just making rent? Do you have any kind of disability? If the answers to those questions are yes, yes, no, no and no in that order I don't think you get to have an opinion that's worth taking seriously on the minimum wage. Sorry!

 

[The Admiral]

I do have to counter the argument that things will increase in price at grocery stores or something along those lines at wherever. More money for people increases the amount they spend and contribute back to the economy. Raising minimum wages actually improves the economies of different cities and states rather than have a negative impact. Sure, your landscaping prices might go up for a person running a local business, but, overall, it's a good thing. States could also stipulate something along the lines of, if your business makes below $x, you can pay your employees a little bit less.

The early days of a sudden massive jump in federal minimum wage, i.e. from whatever it's at now (let's call it "$not enough") to $15 as suggested would be the minimum wage now if it kept up properly with inflation, would be rough, particularly for small businesses, but that's about it. Eventually, things would stabilize. The high tide lifts all boats. Why is someone working a job like, say, at a McDonalds less deserving of being able to pay for shelter by themselves?

And, one last thing about the argument that someone at McDonald's makes $15 in Seattle and another person makes $14 in a rural town in Texas as an emergency technician or something. True, that Texas person went to more school and what not, but that person lives in a place with a lower cost of living. Why should we turn on each other (the McDonald's worker) when we should be turning on our employers and demanding raises? By turning on the people of the lower to middle class, we are drawing the focus away from the upper class as their wages gain exponentially while the lower to middle's gain modestly. Focus on the root of the problem rather than comparing ourselves to each other.

Ultimately, though, a raised federal minimum wage, or just raising all state minimum wages to the same point, or hell, just raising the minimum wage in Texas will get the guy in Texas' wages to go up. When the minimum wage rises, so do the wages of workers who make more than minimum wage. This helps keep the economy moving.