$15 An Hour

15$/hr

"AND EXACTLY WHAT SKILLS DO YOU BRING TO THE TABLE?"
When I think of the millions of Americans with skills, training, education, a very special skill set, and perform a highly skilled, essential, stressful, dangerous jobs often pulling shifts 24/7/365
that work for less than 15$/hr, IT MAKES ME SICK and would be a huge slap in the face to them. I can just imagine the swarm of these type (teachers medical etc) of hard workers applying to fast food joints for better pay and Benefits, thus leaving these unskilled "workers" out on their keisters. they should be careful what they wish for.
 
My question is if a basic entry level no skill set job is now worth $15 per hour, whats a semi-skilled or skilled job worth?

I am guessing a plumbers or electricians (newish) helper make $15 now, he should be getting $30 plus. So the plumber or tradesman should be $60 to $100?

So whats it cost to have some work done now $300 per hour?

I foresee major inflation situation coming then a glut of unused labor...

My economics class blamed the 1970s economy down spiral on Ford and the UAW by establishing an annual 3% raise. It set inflationary pressure on the economy and it just took off.

BTW who starts a family without establishing roots, a secure job and income?

Who says these jobs are careers? Who works these jobs for over a decade and does not get promoted? Why is it you need to live comfortably on eight hours work five days per week?

When I was low on money I worked more, found things to make money doing, 12hrs or more seven days per week when needed. My father did this before me as did his father...

I guess so free phone for me...
 
A few years ago, I was getting $15/hr. as a skilled IT technician, doing lifecycle PC replacements at a major medical system.

I was doing tons of physical labor while illegally being forced to work unpaid overtime as an hourly employee, AND getting mixed up with the police because of the company's shady hiring practices.

I've got precisely ZERO sympathy for burger flippers.
 
Won't matter what the minimum wage is..you'll still have the same UPS's doing the least they can do to "earn" that pay... and you'll still have the same UPS's not working, collecting welfare, having babies and telling us why they can't live on whatever the minimum wage is. And no matter what that min wage is..they'll still be ignoring you or giving you the wrong order. I once went into a Mickey D's And after being ignored for a minute or two while the "workers" had an expletive deleted conversation... one turned around and asked me what the F do you want? HE was the manager. Most FF places have almost edible food anyway... in my opinion. And amazingly you go to some at about did din time and mothers are in the drive through line buying dinner for the family.... some more than once a week. Wonder if they will when prices go up to reflect the minimum wage?
 
I don't know where they came up with the $15 number, but I do believe, based on my personal experience, that they should index the minimum wage to inflation. Let me explain:

I was working for the min. as a kid. Then along came "circumstances" that caused inflation to zoom up (think 10%+). So there I was, making $2.30, (sidebar: which according to the BLS is $9.55 in today's dollars) and all of the sudden - BAM - all the prices shoot up. Suddenly I can't afford a 'tank of juice' for the 'ole Rocket 455 - if you know what I mean...so there I am, reduced to joining 'mad max' in the Australian Outback...

All because the min wage is not indexed to inflation. If it were indexed, and, $9.55 today, we probably wouldn't be having this conversation and I wouldn't have been forced to participate in that 'thunderrun' in that tanker with Mel Gibson!
 
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For what the fast food places charge now, I can go to my favorite watering hole and have a good burger and wash it down with a beer for about 2 bucks more, the only thing I go McD for is their mocca frappe.
 
All because the min wage is not indexed to inflation.

Every now and then, usually about every ten years, the minimum wage becomes a political football. I have long thought that if they tied minimum wage to the inflation index things would be better.

Things are all out of whack today. Back in 1982, I was making about five grand a year working part time. My college tuition was only $2,000 a year. So I paid for my school and had some drinking money left over. Part time jobs won't pay for college today.
 
The trouble with the whole thing in my mind is that these jobs were mostly meant for younger people as a way to earn money. They were never meant to be a lifelong career (except I do know of one person who did work at McDonalds for over 30 years). I guess now, people don't have the skills needed to move from what should be an entry level job to something more.

I'm pretty old and maybe my opinions are severely dated. When I went to high school I picked a technical school that prepared students for college and technical careers. There were also vocational schools that taught trades like brick laying, plumbing, electrical and other trades as well. I learned building construction and architecture. The first job I had paid minimum wage and I was happy to get it. I didn't stay there long and moved up quickly ending up in a career with the federal government first as a draftsman and later going into management. If I wanted a raise I either worked for it or changed jobs to get it. I didn't strike and never collected unemployment insurance.

Now people complain and many stay on free benefits because they pay so much. A very sad state of affairs if you ask me.

Rant over.
 
15$/HR

I know my "fixed" income doesn't work out to 15$/HR, after working & paying taxes for a long time and am fine with it. If the Gov't could "fixed" the cost of living spiraling out of control, that would certainly help.
 
Unfortunately, many of this country's "good jobs" have vanished. When I graduated from high school, most of my class did not go to college. White middle class suburbia but it wasn't expected that everyone would go to college.

Some of my class mates had jobs lined up in factories of one sort or another. That was considered "a good future" back then.

Now most of those factory jobs have disappeared. Either because the company has gone to China or robots have taken over.

Not everyone has the aptitude to go to college.
 
I just used my "Inflation Factor calculator" and the wage I started with (part time in High School) was 50 cents p/hr in 1956 which relates to 2015 as $4.37 p/hr. For a first time job with no experience at anything I still think that's enough. Remember these jobs are intended for a High School student to work at 15-20 hours a week to make pocket money, not raise a family.

A job with responsibility as a trainee in 1964 paid $325 p/mo. I got married and started my family on that, and the inflation factor makes that equivalent to $2493.46 today (per month). That's just about $30000 per year, and still a pretty good starting for a trainee in a position of responsibility.
 
My question is if a basic entry level no skill set job is now worth $15 per hour, whats a semi-skilled or skilled job worth?

I am guessing a plumbers or electricians (newish) helper make $15 now, he should be getting $30 plus. So the plumber or tradesman should be $60 to $100?

So whats it cost to have some work done now $300 per hour?

I foresee major inflation situation coming then a glut of unused labor...

My economics class blamed the 1970s economy down spiral on Ford and the UAW by establishing an annual 3% raise. It set inflationary pressure on the economy and it just took off.

BTW who starts a family without establishing roots, a secure job and income?

Who says these jobs are careers? Who works these jobs for over a decade and does not get promoted? Why is it you need to live comfortably on eight hours work five days per week?

When I was low on money I worked more, found things to make money doing, 12hrs or more seven days per week when needed. My father did this before me as did his father...

I guess so free phone for me...

Well I started working at minimum wage at a large grocery store back about 1962. Of course I was in High school and part time work like that was all that was available. I worked hard always there on time and hardly had any sick days. It does not take long to pick up a couple raises.

Graduated school and got a job as a union construction laborer (good money) A few years later I applied and got in the Pipefitters union and as an apprentice under their rules I was now back on minimum wage. It was a 5 year apprenticeship and we got raises every 6 months. As you learn technique’s get some important skills you are more valuable and therefore better compensated

Now retired on a good pension, but if I was now working I would be getting about $40 an hour & about $30 per hour in benefits. (Retirement, health insurance Etc.) As a welder I might even get a buck or 2 higher wage depending on the job. Also on many jobs lots of overtime available!

To get that money as stated a 5 year apprentices. That consisted of being the low man on the totem pole and getting the "Good Jobs"! Good jobs consisted of the dirtiest, nastiest most boring things out there. You were basically a slave to the journeymen & foremen and they made it a point to make you do that work, while they got the better jobs.
Also going to school 2 nights a week (3 hours each) for 9 months a year X five years of course!

We learned many skills, working at mostly difficult/dangerous work normally outside in all sorts of weather (northern NYS) to get to that wage scale.

One of these days those minimum wage malcontents will figure that out. Course with the advent of ordering kiosks half of them will be gone soon. That comes from a good friend of mine that owns 2 well know fast food franchises!
 
Not everyone has the aptitude to go to college.

Well that statement can't be true. Seems like everyone goes to college now..get degrees in some esoteric studies, spend beaucoup dollars, have no hope of finding a "job" in their field of study and then complain because there is no work...and they have all of these student loans to pay off. I do remember when it was said..go to school...get an edumacation. It all sounded ummm great. I worked at a high end college as night security for a while..a liberal arts school. With the emphasis on liberal. These kids went to school and had very little education useable in the real world. Especially for a good job. What were they or their parents thinking?? Luckily I had a real job. Oh I also ended up with 2 engineering degrees. That I never used. But I never owed money to go to school.
 
I don't really care that they want more money,get what you can get.if the price of the product gets too high,I just don't buy it .Around here,I think the fast food jobs pay $7-$9, but I've also noticed they are chronically under staffed and a number of the employees look homeless sooo they do need to up the ante and figure out how to cover it.Maybe they need to hire more MBAs to solve it?
 
So exactly how does a large corp paying low wages with employees being helped by the taxpayers get away with that? Seems sort of demented to me.
 
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