6 ms·

That's $18.52 an hour in today's dollars. The average pay for a janitor today is closer to $12 an hour. In fact, just a few years after 1976, janitors' wages (a

That's $18.52 an hour in today's dollars. The average pay for a janitor today is closer to $12 an hour. In fact, just a few years after 1976, janitors' wages (at least in LA) started falling sharply below the cost of living: https://socialjusticehistory.org/lalabor/workingla/archives/792 https://socialjusticehistory.org/lalabor/workingla/archives/... The fact that our economic system worked for him does not mean that it works for the vast majority of people in similar jobs. It's quite likely that some of his colleagues are now making less money (in real terms) than they were in the 70s.

maxk42 6y ago
This was in "the late 1980s". Even if we're assuming this was in 1985, $4 in 1985 is $9.36 - $9.85 today. Sources: https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/ https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/ https://smartasset.com/investing/inflation-calculator https://smartasset.com/investing/inflation-calculator https://www.calculator.net/inflation-calculator.html?cstartingamount1=4&cinyear1=1985&coutyear1=2020&calctype=1&x=96&y=26 https://www.calculator.net/inflation-calculator.html?cstarti...
- airza 6y ago
  The article states that the job opening was in 1976.
baron816 6y ago
The US has a lot more immigrants from Latin America living here than it did back then. Plus, unemployment is lower (even with the pandemic). I would rather have 1 million people making $12/hr and 0 unemployed and in poverty than 650k people making $18/hr with 350k just shit out of luck. I can’t say the former is what we have, but with unions or tight labor market regulation, the later tends to be closer to what you get.
- hugi 6y ago
  Yeah, know what you mean. It's a real hellscape up here in Iceland with all these unions and livable wages. We aspire to become a better and more profitable American style system.
- joshAg 6y ago
  The problem is that $12/hr is still "in poverty". You've set up a false dichotomy between everyone out of poverty vs most farther out of poverty, but some still in poverty. There's literally nowhere in the US where a single minimum wage job can rent and "affordable" (defined as <-30% income) two bedroom apartment [1]. And it's not even a close thing like two incomes could afford that. The calculation is that you'd need to work 127 hours per week at minimum wage for an affordable two bedroom apartment. And it gets even worse in expensive metro areas. The poverty line in san francisco is $117,000 for a family of 4 and $82,000 for an individual. Meanwhile minimum wage in SF is $33,425.6 per year (16.07 * 40 * 52). [1]: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/26/minimum-wage-workers-cannot-afford-2-bedroom-rental-anywhere-in-the-us.html https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/26/minimum-wage-workers-cannot-...
  - anchpop 6y ago
    I could survive just fine off a full-time minimum wage job in my state of Michigan. That's 9.45/hour or about $1500/month. I rent a pretty nice place in a college town for $550/month (across the street from campus, middle of downtown, utilities included). I eat mostly pasta and canned soup, but that's just because it's easy and cheap, and I do go out to eat with my girlfriend once or twice a week. let's say another $700/month for money, phone bill, gas, and walking-around money. Just to round it out let's add $200/month to put into saving for unexpected expenses and $100/month for car insurance or anything else I forgot. I'm on my parent's health insurance, I think if that were not an option it would really complicate things. Google says the average annual health insurance premium is $15,500, which would basically be my entire yearly pay. I think when you work more than 30 hours your employer is supposed to pay some of that, and maybe there's subsidies too for people on low income, I'm not really sure how it works. So basically, the current minimum wage is fine for me. For a single parent with 3 kids, it would obviously not be nearly enough. But also, I'm not sure I'm capable of doing any work that's worth a living wage for a single parent with 3 kids, so raising the minimum wage that high would probably put me out of a job. Maybe the minimum wage should be set as high as it can be without costing too many jobs, then the government should give everyone the support they need to feed their families and not be homeless.
bluedino 6y ago
Minimum wage in LA is like $14

maxk42 6y ago

This was in "the late 1980s". Even if we're assuming this was in 1985, $4 in 1985 is $9.36 - $9.85 today. Sources: https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/ https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/ https://smartasset.com/investing/inflation-calculator https://smartasset.com/investing/inflation-calculator https://www.calculator.net/inflation-calculator.html?cstartingamount1=4&cinyear1=1985&coutyear1=2020&calctype=1&x=96&y=26 https://www.calculator.net/inflation-calculator.html?cstarti...

airza 6y ago
The article states that the job opening was in 1976.

baron816 6y ago

The US has a lot more immigrants from Latin America living here than it did back then. Plus, unemployment is lower (even with the pandemic). I would rather have 1 million people making $12/hr and 0 unemployed and in poverty than 650k people making $18/hr with 350k just shit out of luck. I can’t say the former is what we have, but with unions or tight labor market regulation, the later tends to be closer to what you get.

hugi 6y ago
Yeah, know what you mean. It's a real hellscape up here in Iceland with all these unions and livable wages. We aspire to become a better and more profitable American style system.
joshAg 6y ago
The problem is that $12/hr is still "in poverty". You've set up a false dichotomy between everyone out of poverty vs most farther out of poverty, but some still in poverty. There's literally nowhere in the US where a single minimum wage job can rent and "affordable" (defined as <-30% income) two bedroom apartment [1]. And it's not even a close thing like two incomes could afford that. The calculation is that you'd need to work 127 hours per week at minimum wage for an affordable two bedroom apartment. And it gets even worse in expensive metro areas. The poverty line in san francisco is $117,000 for a family of 4 and $82,000 for an individual. Meanwhile minimum wage in SF is $33,425.6 per year (16.07 * 40 * 52). [1]: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/26/minimum-wage-workers-cannot-afford-2-bedroom-rental-anywhere-in-the-us.html https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/26/minimum-wage-workers-cannot-...
- anchpop 6y ago
  I could survive just fine off a full-time minimum wage job in my state of Michigan. That's 9.45/hour or about $1500/month. I rent a pretty nice place in a college town for $550/month (across the street from campus, middle of downtown, utilities included). I eat mostly pasta and canned soup, but that's just because it's easy and cheap, and I do go out to eat with my girlfriend once or twice a week. let's say another $700/month for money, phone bill, gas, and walking-around money. Just to round it out let's add $200/month to put into saving for unexpected expenses and $100/month for car insurance or anything else I forgot. I'm on my parent's health insurance, I think if that were not an option it would really complicate things. Google says the average annual health insurance premium is $15,500, which would basically be my entire yearly pay. I think when you work more than 30 hours your employer is supposed to pay some of that, and maybe there's subsidies too for people on low income, I'm not really sure how it works. So basically, the current minimum wage is fine for me. For a single parent with 3 kids, it would obviously not be nearly enough. But also, I'm not sure I'm capable of doing any work that's worth a living wage for a single parent with 3 kids, so raising the minimum wage that high would probably put me out of a job. Maybe the minimum wage should be set as high as it can be without costing too many jobs, then the government should give everyone the support they need to feed their families and not be homeless.

bluedino 6y ago

Minimum wage in LA is like $14