Minimum wage is already “livable”

[danielpalos]

What's a "liveable" wage in each state?
How do you know?

Better mass transit systems could enable better market-based economic solutions.

 

[Baron Von Murderpaws]

If We the People rose up and took away ALL politicians' self inflated wages, and forced them to make $8.00 an hour.......things would literally change over night!!!!

 

[Baron Von Murderpaws]

I've NEVER had a "liveable" wage in my whole life in this country!!!

 

[Crepitus]

Minimum wage isn’t $5 an hour.…it’s $7.50, and only 2% of people with so little skills or experience make that. And I DID say it could be raised to $10.

At $10 an hour, people could live a livable lifestyle - with roommates.

But, and I know that this is hard for leftists to digest, raising it to $15 would drive a lot of small businesses out of existence, and then MORE people would be totally dependent on other people’s money for full support.

(Another problem is that even with $15 an hour, people don’t want to work due to all the new handouts, like the government child support checks. Another topic.)


Market forces already compensate for that. Here in my East Coast city, starting wages are $15 at the minimum, with many jobs posted at $17 or $18. That means a kid (or an unskilled adult) could earn $30,000, combine households with someone else, and bam! - livable.

So let’s run the new numbers, at $30,000. The person running items through “pick this up, scan it, and bag it” line is taking home around $2200 a month, after payroll deductions. He could share a NICE townhouse going for $2400 a month, and his share is $800.

That leaves him $1400 a month for groceries, public transportation, and some other basics. That’s livable. If he finds it’s not, he can rent the “so-so” townhouse with roommates, at a share of $600, leavong him $1600 a month. That could be $300 for groceries, $60 for public transport, $40 for Obamacare, $50 for his share of utilities, and $50 for miscellaneous. That still leaves him with $1100!

If a business cannot survive and pay a living wage it deserves to fail. Another one that can will move in soon.

 

[Lisa558]

If a business cannot survive and pay a living wage it deserves to fail. Another one that can will move in soon.

Yeah, yeah….we’ve heard that before from leftists who don’t understand how an economy works.

1) Half the businesses would fail, and we would have tens of millions of people thrown into unemployment - and forced to rely on government welfare indefinitely due to the shortage of job openings. Of course, this may be what libsters are hoping for.

2) The minimum wage, paid to the lowest 2% of the country, IS livable. The most unskilled, uneducated among us can rent a room for a few hundred dollars a month. People have done that for generations, and they were living.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

If a business cannot survive and pay a living wage it deserves to fail. Another one that can will move in soon.

That's not why businesses fail. They fail when they can't sell goods or services at a competitive price. To do that they pay workers what they are worth.

So what's a worker worth? You are only worth as much as the person your employer can hire to do the same job and quality of work that you do. You're not worth a dime more or a dime less.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

I've NEVER had a "liveable" wage in my whole life in this country!!!

A livable wage is a new leftist concept. It never existed before. Yes, we've always had a minimum wage, but a minimum wage is not a livable wage unless as the OP suggests you live with other people to share costs.

I could never afford an apartment or house on minimum wage back in the 70's and people can't do that today. Nothing has changed except the attitude of the workers. The left lies about a livable wage as if we actually had one at one time, and we let it slip through our fingers. Never happened.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Who told you we couldn’t make it livable?

Economics 101.

If you make the minimum wage "livable" then it sets off a domino effect. If the new national minimum wage is $15.00 an hour, do you think the person working at an industry that worked their way to $15.00 an hour will find that acceptable? Of course not. They are going to demand at least $22.00 an hour. And what about his coworker who worked his way to $22.00 an hour?

Industry would have to recoup all that lost money in additional wages by increasing prices on their products or services. The person at the new $15.00 minimum wage would soon find themselves in the same position as the old wage because everything would cost so much more, like we're seeing today.

 

[Weatherman2020]

P.S. I‘d be OK with increasing it to $10. All jobs around here pay a minimum of $15 anyway.

$10 wage in Los Angeles won’t pay the electric bill. Life is filled with choices. Stay there or move to where it’s affordable is one of those choices.

 

[Lisa558]

A livable wage is a new leftist concept. It never existed before. Yes, we've always had a minimum wage, but a minimum wage is not a livable wage unless as the OP suggests you live with other people to share costs.

I could never afford an apartment or house on minimum wage back in the 70's and people can't do that today. Nothing has changed except the attitude of the workers. The left lies about a livable wage as if we actually had one at one time, and we let it slip through our fingers. Never happened.

Agree, and that’s why I started this thread - to disavow people of the idea that a salary paid to the bottom 2% should allow them to afford a middle-class lifestyle (which is what they mean when they say “livable.”)

If you are earning $400 a week ($10 an hour), you can find a cheapo room is a house for around that amount, per month. Wish we could move away from the idea that an 18-year-old kid fresh out of high school and with no job skills is entitled to rent his own apartment and buy a car.

 

[evenflow1969]

You have a point. Those sly taxes, fees and fines that rise or are inserted every year does not help the situation. That and the couple per cent of inflation per year that the power brokers try to keep slowly eat away resources. The working class level is not very even and there are jobs that are privileged in salary, benefits and pensions compared to others. Maybe some jobs are to good for the peasant also. And you are on the internet. Truthfully, there are a lot of taxes with many hidden in everything we do. They add up.

And I am on the internet? Lol, I don't make minimum wage. That being said the cost of groceries and gas are not any different for the minimum wage earner. The point is minimum wage is not livable as the op would have you believe.

 

[Weatherman2020]

I do not belive anyone thinks someone working the drive thru at a fast food joint should be able to afford a 3500 square foot home with a couple of SUV's, college tuition and orthodontic bills.

Also, how many people live in a 3500 sqft home? I live in a 4 bedroom, 4 bath full walkout basement and it is less than 3000 sqft.

All you do on every thread is spew bullshit strawman arguments to deflect what you Leftards say.

 

[Weatherman2020]

Special pleading is worthless. This is part of the problem that needs to be solved:
View attachment 564350

Why are they in Los Angeles, the most unaffordable location in America?
Oh yeah. Democrats give them free money and don’t punish crime there.

 

[Canon Shooter]

$40 for his share of utilities

I wanna' know where this kid is living that the total cost of all utilities is only $120...

 

[Weatherman2020]

Better mass transit systems could enable better market-based economic solutions.

Arresting druggies would end the issue.

 

[Weatherman2020]

I wanna' know where this kid is living that the total cost of all utilities is only $120...

Much of America. I’ve got a huge home and my bill last month was $125.

 

[Weatherman2020]

Poor in America is your iPhone is a model 8.

 

[Harpy Eagle]

All you do on every thread is spew bullshit strawman arguments to deflect what you Leftards say.

I am not the one that made the argument, I quoted it word for word. Take it up with our fellow Trump butt buddy.

 

[Anomalism]

If a business cannot survive and pay a living wage it deserves to fail. Another one that can will move in soon.

Your way results in less jobs. It also makes it harder for the people at the bottom to find opportunity for growth.

 

[Weatherman2020]

I am not the one that made the argument, I quoted it word for word. Take it up with our fellow Trump butt buddy.

And you’re a dumbass for even trying to spin you Leftards aren’t pushing for minimum wage jobs to be career jobs.