theForgottenone Posted December 29, 2013 Report Share Posted December 29, 2013 It will never happen. Minimum wage jobs are not the way to live your life or support a family. If you don't have the motivation or making effort to better yourself via higher education or different career then too bad. Life ain't fair and reward those who work hard to get where they are at. I certainly still don't know how people can support family with $20/hr wage yet alone minimum wage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ol' Dirty Noodle Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 I'd work at McDonalds as a second jobs if I got paid in blumpkins, or a more standard version of the BJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurgerBob Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 That's the whole point of minimum wage jobs - to teach you what you don't want to do for such little money. Wholesale retail fishmonger, carpenter, life guard, delivery guy, and telemarketer. That was enough to cure me. Is Jesus still accepting interns? I need something good on my resume. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burn-E Posted January 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 Funny, my employer was a master carpenter who was a friend of my father and needed an unskilled laborer to help build his personal home during the Summer. Came away with some very definite skills and no desire to ever apply them for anyone else but myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurgerBob Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 Carpentry is an awesome hobby. I hope to keep it that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt1122 Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 Just some food for thought: Around here, rent for a decent (non-luxury) one or two bedroom 1,000 square foot apartment starts around $1,500. Two parents and a kid could probably really make that work. That comes to $18,000 a year. It's generally viewed that housing should account for about a third of your annual income expenditure, which means to afford a two bedroom 1,000 square foot apartment and live comfortably you should be making $54,000 (gross, before taxes). To have two people working a 40-hour week and make this much, minimum wage would have to be about $13 / hour. That being the case, $13 / hour seems like the right starting point, followed by adjustment for inflation. However, $15 / hour would put one person working a 40-hour work week at $31,200. That only provides for $858 rent, and what's that going to get you? And how are you going to feed that kid? Also, what about the minimum working age? Should a 16-year old who lives at home and has all of his expenses paid by mom and dad be making $13 / hour? Or should we make them prove that they are providing for themselves and or their family to make that same minimum wage? And what about elder dependents? Is $13 / hour going to allow someone to care for them? Yada yada yada, our economy is horribly broken. Thank capitalism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magicaljake Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 the cost of living is absolutely ridiculous in vermont for real. a studio apartment in burlington (vermonts city) rivials that of NYC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyb5 Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 Funny, my employer was a master carpenter who was a friend of my father and needed an unskilled laborer to help build his personal home during the Summer. Came away with some very definite skills and no desire to ever apply them for anyone else but myself. Sounds pretty similar to my current job, but I've been doing it for 5 years - in the summers and when I'm home on breaks from college. I've been fortunate to learn a number of useful skills, and get paid fairly well, but certainly don't want to keep doing this for a living after I graduate in May. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matty Moo Posted January 6, 2014 Report Share Posted January 6, 2014 To have two people working a 40-hour week and make this much, minimum wage would have to be about $13 / hour. That being the case, $13 / hour seems like the right starting point, followed by adjustment for inflation. However, $15 / hour would put one person working a 40-hour work week at $31,200. That only provides for $858 rent, and what's that going to get you? And how are you going to feed that kid? The unfortunate part of that statement is that the lower income bracket really can't afford kids, but most of them just bang out freely and spit them out left and right. All of that takes place while the folks with a bit of common sense wait to have them until they get established and can afford them. Just like the move Idiocracy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt1122 Posted January 6, 2014 Report Share Posted January 6, 2014 Yeah, and if there were fewer children but we spent the same amount on education would our education system be better? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burn-E Posted January 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2014 No, because that's a fairytale. School districts with fewer children already spend more per child because generally they're located in the "high rent" districts / towns. Whereas the school districts with more children per household are desperately poor because the people who live in that part of town are too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt1122 Posted January 6, 2014 Report Share Posted January 6, 2014 Well we'd be able to spend all the poor peoples' education tax dollars on educating rich kids instead! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burn-E Posted January 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2014 Unions. That's the whole problem. No one recognizes themselves as the working class anymore and as a result the lonely little worker is left to his own devices. http://www.salon.com/2013/12/30/the_middle_class_myth_heres_why_wages_are_really_so_low_today/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theForgottenone Posted February 5, 2014 Report Share Posted February 5, 2014 Washington state is lobby for increase to $12 by 2017. It is close to what they want. http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2014/02/washington_minimum_wage_highes.html#incart_river_default Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theForgottenone Posted June 3, 2014 Report Share Posted June 3, 2014 http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2014/06/seattle_city_council_passes_15.html#incart_river $15 minimum wage will be in effect by 4/1/2015. Current highest is SF with $10.42. Guess cost of living will increase with that new law for Seattle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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