SacBee On Minimum Wage Effects
The Sacramento Bee includes a statement from a Humboldt County minimum wage worker in today's story on the wage increase;
"...longtime Burger King worker and activist Holly Dias, of Humboldt County, hugged the governor after tearfully describing how she struggled to support her infant son at the state’s lowest legal wage, which increased this year from $9 to $10 an hour."
I'll bet she'll always be struggling, as I wrote yesterday, should she stay in the same job but keep expecting government to give her a raise. Not so with another fellow quoted:
" Eddie Alcantara, 22, said he had worked his way up from $9 to $12 an hour and is now a supervisor at the restaurant. He said he is proud of his accomplishment and thinks others should have to do the same, and not just be paid higher wages from the start.
“The minimum wage now is OK,” he said."
My kind of guy and I auppose great minds think alike. Working your way out of the minimum wage is the way to do it. Keep in mind what one fellow pointed out in the Times- Standard back when the county minimum wage measure was going on the ballot,
That fellow was earning a few dollars above minimum wage already and seemed proud of it. In the comments to a story in the Times- Standard he wrote something along the line of, "Great. So now I'll be making minimum wage if this passes". Thus, in a way, Mr. Alcantara will be getting a pay cut with the minimum wage increase.
That's the way a lot of people think about this sort of thing. They don't see it as bringing people up, but lowering themselves down. Thus everyone else raises their wages to stay ahead of minimum wage and, before too long, minimum wage earners are back to square one.
As I wrote yesterday, there will always be someone at the bottom of the pay scale. Seems like our very own Holly Dias will be one of them.
posted by Fred Mangels @ 8:13 AM
15 comments
15 Comments:
I won't mind paying a little bit extra for my Whopper if it gets the entry level staff a higher wage. But that's just me.
Same here. In fact I'd pay more than "a little bit'.
We now see the effects of Generation X; otherwise known as the "Me" Generation. Everything has to be given, not earned.
Kendall and Julie,
Although it's a nice sentiment to say you would gladly pay more keep in mind you are willingly forcing Eddie Alcantara and Holly Dias to pay more also. Are you so sure they are as able as yourselves to pay more?
It won't just be the Whopper you are paying more for, it will be everything.
Whenever the minimum wage goes up, I ask my boss for a raise, as does everyone else in the shop. We get our raises, we raise our rates that we charge to cover the cost increase and life goes on. As Fred points out, raising the minimum wage only temporarily provides extra income to the lowest earners. It is not long before all wages go up to compensate and the the price of all goods and services also go up.
The people that get screwed in all this are retired folks on fixed income.
For them, it is just good old fashioned inflation.
This is the effect of our older generation selling out our jobs to COMMUNIST China in order to make a quick buck.
Everything has to be given, not earned.
Our government GAVE people the green light to do business with commies. Now our workers EARN table scraps, while the government ends up taking up the slack in the form of food stamps and public housing.
Each generation since Nixon opened up trade to commie land has suffered. Stop with the blaming the victim. It's weak and shallow
I couldn't agree more, Fred.
Should we be happy the business will switch over to robotics in time? Not me. The problem with govt help, is they penalize good people who do work for their wages. The welfare system needs to be reformed, not the businesses who struggle to meet all demands that are hell bent on forcing them to close.
Have you seen Rider rants data pages? His last one was enlightening. Back in the good old days, before over reach, companies could & did enjoy a nice profit. (35% for the lucky ones). Today, it's a 7.5% profit average, with many as low as 3.5%. The media won't share this, they're too busy angering people into a collective downfall brought on by their own conclusions after reading rubbish.
Here's the link to the main page, I don't know how to link by story, http://riderrants.blogspot.com
The price of goods and services is up and wages are down.
Are you new to this country? We used to have the highest wages in the world.
You are so right, Fred. A person's wage/salary should be commensurate with their education and abilities. This is still America, where those who are willing to work hard have the opportunity to succeed.
You are so right, Fred. A person's wage/salary should be commensurate with their education and abilities. This is still America, where those who are willing to work hard have the opportunity to succeed.
Your health may suck, but only you would care.
You'd pay some inferior laborer to slap together some shit meat products, on some fluffed up shit bread, with low quality veggies, yack spread for even more money?
You'd pay for a $7 whopper? That makes all sense, holy crap.
$8 doller whopper?
Exactly, but some of it plays off seeing the previous generation getting ripped off and that debt getting pushed onto the me, me and me generation.
Not to mention, Americans overall are a spoiled people.
Uneducated is as uneducated does, oops another two party system tactic to keep the uneducated......uneducated.......higher wages = higher net income.....what a hoot!
On point, seniors made FAR LESS IN A LIFETIME than the "me generation" can make in a decade.
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