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Minimum wage - Poll ended
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My brother didn't realize just how big a scam the minimum wage actually is until I explained all the ways the government screws with these workers after getting that raise. Liberals already admit raising the minimum wage will force many of those at the bottom off the social programs, but on top of that, raising pay pushes people into higher tax brackets. That raise may sound good until you realize most of it's just going to the government through taxes. Then when all is said and done, inflation kicks in and erases whatever buying power is left and the whole issue is back to square one.Certainly, in many areas of the country the cost of living is such that minimum wage jobs are only a step above slavery. And where companies seem disconnected from reality, is that in these areas, market should force up wages naturally without the government mandate. After all, if people can't afford to live one place, they should be leaving for better opportunity. That should dry up the labor pool, forcing employers to compete for workers, hence driving up wages. Yet that's not happening.
The larger the company, it seems the more disconnected from reality they get. Wages aren't rising to secure the workers because oftentimes, the corporate leadership doesn't listen to the local/regional management on certain issues. Those managers are forced to step up and fill in the workload themselves when they can't fill the jobs, and corporate loves when they see divisions doing the same business with less labor. If things fall apart because of under-staffing, they simply blame the low level manager and replace him or her.
Certainly, in many areas of the country the cost of living is such that minimum wage jobs are only a step above slavery.I think this depends which country you live in.
The poll is open, guys. Don't forget to vote and we'll further discuss the results!Here's Wiki's map representing the difference in MW:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...
It's not an unequivocal issue. Just a couple of examples.
If not a minimum wage, what would stop an employer to offer a refugee/student/desperate soul to work for any pay?
On the other hand, when an employer looks at the above map, wouldn't he say to him/herself: 'why should I keep production in my country, when I can pay much cheaper in another?" Thus, minimum wage may be seen as driving manufacturing elsewhere..
Maybe revise the tax system so that low wage earners are given a break. That way the wage increase would go into their pockets, not to the government. And revise the wage limits upwards for government programs. Penalize American companies who use foreign workers. Something's got to give for people who work hard and aren't fairly compensated.
Ok, so we have the results: out of 8 who voted, 7 support minimum wage, while 1 is undecided. Having a small number of respondents, hardly this poll is statistically representative, but it's telling nonetheless.I guess some see it as a measure of decency to provide an adequate remuneration for a labor. It also reflects the deference in bargaining positions between employers and employees aspiring for low qualification jobs..
The bar in my eyes should gyrate near the cost of living so that a working individual be able to achieve a modest standard of living..
How about a maximum wage? Do you think there need to be a cap? In private/public sector?
Hey, I thought I had some pretty good ideas about implementing a higher minimum wage. Any discussion there?As far as a maximum wage, good luck with that in the US:)
I am in agreement with a maximum, but I can't see how it would be implemented in the current economic climates of many countries.
We have a significantly higher minimum wage than many countries (Australia). Consequently, tipping isn't a thing here. In fact, looking at the map, it appears we have the highest minimum wage in the world...It still isn't easy to live on, but it is at least a basic living.
I've noticed that most proposals start with limiting the top tiers of tax rates, and are somehow framed in terms of giving tax breaks to everyone or making taxes more equal. My own feeling is that they are equal. Everyone making up to a certain amount pays the same tax on that amount. And so on, and so on, up the income level. Of course the people making the most money are paying more taxes. If you truly wanted to give a tax break to everyone, cut the minimum rate. It actually affects everyone exactly the same. As far as minimum wage goes, I'm a small employer who pays everyone well above the minimum wage. My concern isn't that a large sudden increase would affect me today, but that it would affect me if an employee leaves or retires. If suddenly the new inexperienced employee is making only a couple of dollars less than the lowest paid long term employee, one of two things will happen: either I give everyone a significant raise, more than I could afford to do in a single year, or I have disgruntled employees who might just quit because they feel disrespected. After all, they now can go elsewhere and get almost the same income as they were getting here.
So as a small employer, I'm all for raising the minimum wage, but doing so more gradually than the proposed increase. I've found that you get exactly what you pay for in an employee. By starting people at more than minimum and giving them regular raises if they are dependable and they perform well, we get good, long-term employees. For what it's worth.
Scout wrote: "Maybe revise the tax system so that low wage earners are given a break. That way the wage increase would go into their pockets, not to the government. And revise the wage limits upwards for governm..."We have a tax free threshold here and sliding tax rates. If you're interested, here's a link to have a bit of a look.
https://www.ato.gov.au/rates/individu...
Scott wrote: "As far as minimum wage goes, I'm a small employer who pays everyone well above the minimum wage...."Solid, considerate approach. Sound concerns
Leonie wrote: "We have a tax free threshold here and sliding tax rates. If you're interested, here's a link to have a bit of a look.https://www.ato.gov.au/rates/individu... ..."
Interesting, a progressive tax, getting quite high at relatively modest income.
A friend of mine in Sydney, earning quite well in financial markets high-tech firm, says that buying an apartment is nonetheless beyond their reach and that real estate prices, fueled by Chinese massive investments, skyrocket..
Yes, that's right. Too many people all wanting to live in the same place - 5 million - almost 25% of Australia's population living in one city.When you consider our landmass, it seems insane, but our jobs are mainly in cities, unfortunately. Some of us (like me) still live in small towns, where housing is much more affordable.
The poll is over, but we can ask it again: are you for or against?
Today, absolutely every citizen of the country is interested in this issue, and this is not surprising. After all, housing, health care, education, transportation, food and other utilities require a stable income to feed every person. Check out the article www.analyticsinsight.net/how-does-min... with which you can understand how the minimum salary can actually affect the automation market. I am sure that here you will find a lot of interesting and useful information for yourself.
The minimum wage was developed by FDR to make sure a person can work a 40 hour week and able able to afford things. It has not kept up with inflation. There is plenty of talk about training wages and the like, but right now, people do not want to work for the minimum wage. It is usually really lousy work and you are treated poorly.
COVID took care of this in the short term. Fast food places are offering incentives and paying $12 an hour just to get people to work. It won't last, once the outrageous unemployment benefits go away and people have to compete for jobs. As for raising minimum wage, do it and prices go up, and the people who are getting paid more will have to pay higher prices, so what's the benefit really? I think it would be more effective to give people making under a certain amount a big tax break, maybe no taxes.
29 states have a higher minimum wage than the federal government. It is not simply a result of the COL in some states, as AZ or NM would not be considered to cost as much as NJ and NY. Other than being single with no major debt, I can't imagine how anyone can manage to live on 7.25 an hour. This article is interesting. The federal minimum wage adjusted for inflation was worth the most in 1979.
https://usafacts.org/articles/minimum...
It establishes the basic rule/price for paid labor. On the other hand it's restrictive towards the concept of entirely 'free market'.
As, an experiment, I've set a poll, that shall remain open for 3 days, so each member can choose an answer or offer his/her own:
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...
Let's see how it goes