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Do comprehend the concept of cost of living variances across the country?
$15 where I live has the same purchasing power as $40 in Manhattan.
If companies are forced to pay $15 an hour here, then shouldn't Manhattan companies be required to pay $40 an hour for minimum wage? Or would that crush small businesses?
Not only that, but people crying for minimum wage then ask their hours to be cut. Happened in NY. They wanted to keep their earnings low in order to get all the government freebies.
You will note from my original budget that I had co-pays in there. As far as the others, low-income get their insurance premiums and meds covered almost in full.
The point was the when I was starting out with a low salary, my only bills were rent, utilities, and the parking spot. Low-income people just have to double or triple up with their housing until they move past minimum wage - and 98% of workers have done just that.
$1200/year for clothes, medical care, and saving for a rainy day? What if you get sick? There is nothing in there for child care either. Once a child is here, there is no point in saying don't have one until you can afford it.
I'm not so much set on $15/hour as the minimum wage across the country. Here in Mississippi, it would be manageable at $10/hour. The problem that I see is that too many minimum wage earners don't have the choice to be full-time workers at one job with benefits. When you can't depend on a fixed schedule, things like child care become impossible to manage. Additionally, public transport is often limited to one route per hour for day workers only. The buses don't run at night when many minimum wage earners are working.
I just don't see how you can say that the jobs of hotel workers, orderlies, groundskeepers, etc. are not supposed to pay a wage that can support an employee. Most of these minimum wage earners are already living in group accommodations with multiple family members.
What is your view on employers avoiding full-time status for their employees as a way to cut costs? And on scheduling shifts in a way that prevents employees from taking on other jobs and finding reliable child care?
Additionally, believe it or not, there are the people who just don't qualify for benefits or who don't have the wherewithal to apply. It takes a lot of time and effort to apply for all the government programs, and some people just don't.
$1200/year for clothes, medical care, and saving for a rainy day? What if you get sick? There is nothing in there for child care either. Once a child is here, there is no point in saying don't have one until you can afford it.
I'm not so much set on $15/hour as the minimum wage across the country. Here in Mississippi, it would be manageable at $10/hour. The problem that I see is that too many minimum wage earners don't have the choice to be full-time workers at one job with benefits. When you can't depend on a fixed schedule, things like child care become impossible to manage. Additionally, public transport is often limited to one route per hour for day workers only. The buses don't run at night when many minimum wage earners are working.
I just don't see how you can say that the jobs of hotel workers, orderlies, groundskeepers, etc. are not supposed to pay a wage that can support an employee. Most of these minimum wage earners are already living in group accommodations with multiple family members.
What is your view on employers avoiding full-time status for their employees as a way to cut costs? And on scheduling shifts in a way that prevents employees from taking on other jobs and finding reliable child care?
Additionally, believe it or not, there are the people who just don't qualify for benefits or who don't have the wherewithal to apply. It takes a lot of time and effort to apply for all the government programs, and some people just don't.
Well first.....you shouldn’t have children if you’re still earning minimum wage. You wait until you are earning more. And just because someone is irresponsible and has a child anyway doesn’t mean they should get paid more.
And we have different ideas as what wage can allow someone to live. Where I live, the MW is $9.50, but everyone pays more - including Walmart and McDonalds. So let’s say a married couple is each earning minimum. That means together they are bringing in $40,000. It’s doable.
And it would effectively be the same for a single worker. They just double or triple up and split costs. As you say, that’s what they’re doing. My own grandparents took in a lodger to help meet costs. People do what they need to.
The point is....you’re only looking at it from one perspective: what you think should be provided to the minimum wage earner. The fact is that if you raise it too high, businesses will be forced to close shop and there will be millions fewer jobs available for the entry-level worker.
And once again, we are talking about only 2% of the population. I am all for paying for their training courses so they can learn a more valuable skill, but many don’t want to train for better. That’s their choice. (And I speak from personal experience.)
They need to live in such a way that they can pay for the dentist, and they probably shouldn’t have a car if they are on minimum wage. And knowing how precarious their situation is, they should take a few courses to learn a trade of some sort.
And remember, we are talking about only 2% of workers. To hear you liberals talk, you’d think that small business owners are paying most of the staff at minimum wage.
That's like 1.9 million families, which contributes to the over 10 million children in the US living in poverty. They are usually clustered in places which make some towns and cities have ghetto. Low wages contribute to many social problems. Its like dominoes the problems caused by low wages are manifold.
No single parent making minumum wage is going to have birthday parties for their kids, pay for little leagues, there won't be sleep overs, low self esteem, Where do they get the time and money to better them selves?
In order to advance in life at some point you'll need a relatively new phone.
You do realize that you can't rock Doordash or Grubhub with a rotary model, right homie?
If one can afford a car with it's expenses - insurance, maintenance, repairs, gas - then one isn't doing too badly. A late model phone is a luxury. And who says one must have the latest IOS updates? My daughter until a few months ago had an iPhone 5 I gave her and was able to make and receive calls just fine.
Like what? I put in the budget for utilities. When I was young and earning bottom dollar, my only bills were rent, the phone, and the parking space in the garage.
What other bills are you talking about? The monthly bill for the Smartphone? The bill from MACY’s for cosmetics? The bill from Kay Jewelers for the new bracelet? Sorry, under MW, you can’t buy any of that. That doesn’t mean one can’t squeak by paying for just the basics.
Really?
You didn't have to pay for gas or car insurance? No car payments and no repairs? Only the parking space?
The idea that employees should double up and do without so that business owners can make a profit is revolting.
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