10 Arrested for protesting in Atlanta. Asking for $15 fast food wages. (school, college)

[ElleKaye]

I started to ask but decided to google how much minimum wage was in Georgia: State Minimum Wages | 2014 Minimum Wage by State

$5.15?!? I might have sat down in the middle of the street too if all i was bringing home was just over $10K a year. You can't live here off that.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by famlife

I don't know... I think that if they want a living wage, they should advance their career. Maybe I'm alone in this. I seem to represent unpopular opinion lately.

No, you are not alone.

[ElleKaye]

When i circled back and scrolled through the list before closing the link, I noticed Georgia and Wyoming have the lowest state minimum wages. Given the cost of living in Atlanta, that's just crazy.

[Houston3]

Originally Posted by jeoff

If it were possible, I think it might make more sense to find a way for the government to subsidize low wages, instead of institute a minimum wage increase. While the costs would be about the same, it would be less likely to kill low wage jobs, and might make American businesses better able to compete with lower wage countries without having our workers take home pay decrease. (Yes, it would make taxes go up, but the consumer also pays for a minimum wage increase paid by employers, and at least this could lead to more people working).

Is the government your answer to fix everything? This country is going down the tubes because of government fixing things!.....

[DawgPark]

Originally Posted by ElleKaye

I started to ask but decided to google how much minimum wage was in Georgia: State Minimum Wages | 2014 Minimum Wage by State

$5.15?!? I might have sat down in the middle of the street too if all i was bringing home was just over $10K a year. You can't live here off that.

That's not true. Federal minimum wage is $7.25.

Paying unskilled, untrained workers $15/hr is absolute lunacy and recipe for economic disaster.

I could see a raise to $8 or even $9. I never hire anyone below $13/hr . . . for several reasons.

[red92s]

Originally Posted by Houston3

Is the government your answer to fix everything? This country is going down the tubes because of government fixing things!.....

Walmart and Fast Food are the biggest welfare queens in the entire country. They've realized they can outsource a large chunk of their payroll and benefits to Uncle Sam by keeping wages and hours low, forcing their employees to rely partially on government assistance.

[DJDeadParrot]

Originally Posted by jeoff

If it were possible, I think it might make more sense to find a way for the government to subsidize low wages...

This is already happening to the tune of $7 billion of public assistance. McDonalds workers, alone, account for $1.2b.

Fast-Food Wages Come With a $7 Billion Side of Public Assistance - Businessweek

[Cameron H]

Get used to it. This is the age of capital, and labor (especially unskilled labor) will become increasingly worthless. Wages are low because there is abundant supply and very low demand for labor. Neither sitting in the street with a sign nor telling folks to "get a better job" is going to change it. Our economic system is working as intended.

[jeoff]

Originally Posted by Houston3

Is the government your answer to fix everything? This country is going down the tubes because of government fixing things!.....

No, I do not think that the government should fix everything. But the government should protect industries that are vital to Nation's well-being. Without huge subsides Japan would not be able to farm rice that could be sold at a price even close to what it could be imported for, but Japan recognizes that it is in their interest to have the ability to feed their own-so they pay their farmers huge subsidies and tax foreign rice. No mater how productive the American worker is, it is impossible to compete in manufacturing with China, India and elsewhere at an American wage without subsidies. Shouldn't worker subsidies at least be considered to preserve our manufacturing base?

[JPD]

Originally Posted by aslowdodge

If you pay unskilled people $15 per hour form their $10 and someone with a skill stays at $20, what's the incentive to better yourself to get to $20?

The incentive is that the $20 isn't the ceiling. From there you can get to management, then to the corporate office, ownership of your own busienss, etc. Pay people with no skills $15 isn't going to prevent those with skills and ambition from achieveing greater success.

By the way, there's a big difference between $15 and hour and $20 an hour. If you're a full time employee, that's an extra $10k per year. That in itself is a major incentive.