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Minimum wage
Work Views
Minimum wage
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Anyone who thinks that a minimum wage needs to be dicatated by elected officials is in the dark. There is a minimum wage in my city, but it is certainly not $5.15 an hour. You cannot pay $5.00 an hour
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Forums » Topic Forums » Work Views » Minimum wage
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Minimum wage
posted at 10/4/2005 3:37 AM EDT
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Posts: 1
First: 10/4/2005 Last: 10/4/2005 |
An unfortunate by-product of keeping costs down (or increasing a profit margin) is sending jobs overseas, where a $150-$200 month salary is considered generous. So, raising the minimum wage does not automatically result in a better standard of living for all who are at that salary level, but does result in fewer positions available at minimum wage.
Stretching this discussion to a somewhat related topic, spend money on education so people have skills which result in higher pay. Though there will always be the non-skilled labor needs, and people who are limited in their ability to learn skills, supply and demand would dictate what is paid if there were less unskilled people to perform those duties. |
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Minimum wage
posted at 10/4/2005 10:50 AM EDT
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Posts: 1
First: 10/4/2005 Last: 10/4/2005 |
I think you've hit the nail on the head. Most of the offered solutions are only Band-Aids and do not address the root cause of the problem: low skill level and low effort equate to low pay. We can not as a society reward low effort with a minimum "living wage". The result would be skyrocketing inflation and future generations with ever deteriorating work ethics. We must invest in better basic and advanced education and make a real effort to instill strong work ethics within our youngest workers. Employees that work harder and smarter even when paid low wages are typically the ones that advance and find better opportunities. Raising the minimum wage doesnt raise the productivity bar, it only lowers the expectation that hard work pays off. |
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Minimum wage
posted at 10/12/2005 7:33 AM EDT
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Posts: 1
First: 10/12/2005 Last: 10/12/2005 |
There should not be any mandated minimum wage. The market should be allowed to dictate what an employer needs to pay to get the best possible talent. The minimum wage was never intended to "support a family". It is merely the first rung in one's career. The great majority of minimum wage workers are students or young adults in their first jobs. Entry level jobs should have low pay to provide incentives for people to improve themselves and move up the ladder. If you keep raising the minimum wage, it will remove that incentive altogether. |
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Minimum wage
posted at 2/28/2006 9:32 AM EST
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Posts: 12
First: 2/1/2003 Last: 12/3/2007 |
Jumping in late on this one...
I agree that the market drives the wage, but I also agree that employers will pay the lowest they can get away with, depending on the current employment situation in the area. I was unemployed 5 years ago and found this out through experience. I was called for several interviews for positions that required years of experience and even formal education in my field. When the talk came down to money, the interviewer would proudly announce that the job paid $8 an hour! Whoopee! That was about 1.50 an hour more than the minimum wage in my state at that time. That wage wouldn't even exceed the unemployment checks I was receiving at that time. And I guarantee that those employers had no problem finding someone to take the job at that wage, after I turned them down. |
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Minimum wage
posted at 3/1/2006 7:25 AM EST
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Posts: 9
First: 2/28/2006 Last: 4/12/2006 |
The company I currently work for want to hire experienced people, with high school diplomas, and py them minimum wage.
And they question my recruiting skills since I have not been able to get anyone to work here when evryone in my "market" starts entry level employees at $1.00 more than minimum. |
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Minimum wage
posted at 3/17/2006 5:08 PM EDT
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Posts: 2
First: 3/17/2006 Last: 3/17/2006 |
Hi,
I think it is important to remember that a minimum wage can be an advantage from an organizations productivity point of view, and for the economy as a whole. For example, imposing a minimum wage on organizations prompts them to find more productive tasks for low-paid workers, thereby raising their productivity. Alternatively, the minimum wage may reduce labor turnover. With fewer low-productive trainees, the average productivity of the firms workers is increased. As for the economy, evidence from the 1980s suggests minimum-wage hikes reduced employment of minimum-wage workers, particularly teenagers (which is a worry in low income households). The general consensus being that a 10 percent increase in the minimum wage would reduce teenage employment by about 1 to 3 percent. I think the argument for minimum wage can be summed up by two points: (1) More workers are helped by the minimum wage than are hurt, and (2) the minimum wage gives society some assurance that employers are not "taking undo advantage" of vulnerable, low-skilled workers". As for the Wal-Mart argument, other incentives can be offered to employees apart from monetary; although not widely practiced in America today, many companies around the world count their employees as major assets in their organizations (Starbucks is a good example of this, offering medical insurance to part-time employees), offering differing rewards and recognition packages. Thanks, Justin. |
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