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I think minimum wage is supposed to enable you to move up and not a wage where you can lead a comfortable life. It's expected that a single person on minimum wa

I think minimum wage is supposed to enable you to move up and not a wage where you can lead a comfortable life. It's expected that a single person on minimum wage can't get a two bedroom house.

MauroIksem 5y ago
That was not the original intention of minimum wage. Also consider how long it would take a person to "move up" from minimum wage to a liveable one.
- wizardofmysore 5y ago
  Got it. I don't know if all jobs can give such a wage. Perhaps we need to define what it would mean to live a minimal comfortable life. I think it's fair to ensure people get good opportunities.
  - Jcowell 5y ago
    If a job cannot afford to give its employees a livable wage then it does not deserve to exists. It’s similar to a Restaurant that cannot adhere to safety standards does not deserve to operate.
completelylegit 5y ago
Attitudes like this make life especially difficult for single mothers in low income brackets.
- wizardofmysore 5y ago
  I do understand that it's hard for single mothers to live on minimum wage. We do need to consider the implications of giving minimum wage to all however. Not that I'm opposed to it but just not sure if it will help majority in the long run.
  - Jcowell 5y ago
    Can you elaborate on this? Anyone and everyone has access to minimum wage jobs baring very certain exceptions. What’s the difference ?
acharp 5y ago
2 bedroom is absurd to expect at minimum wage, but it says the price for a 1 bedroom is at ~$20. Yeah I agree, minimum wage is the floor, but it should still be possible to live.
- denkmoon 5y ago
  Do poor families not need separate bedrooms?
- alephu5 5y ago
  I'm pretty sure you could get a 2-bed home with minimum wage 70 years ago, so I suppose you're saying that it's absurd to expect societies to advance and make life easier.
hug 5y ago
From FDR, the guy responsible for establishing the wage floor: > no business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country. > By ‘business’ I mean the whole of commerce as well as the whole of industry; by workers I mean all workers, the white collar class as well as the men in overalls; and by living wages I mean more than a bare subsistence level — I mean the wages of decent living So no, the minimum wage is supposed to be a living wage, but has fallen far from its inception. You can argue whether it's necessary that we have a minimum wage, but not what it was conceived for.
- wizardofmysore 5y ago
  I see, I did not know that. I thought it was a means to ensure someone who doesn't have a good job gets a minimum amount of wage till they find something stable.
  - Jcowell 5y ago
    Even then I don’t get the point of this. Where would one find the time to get the qualifications for a more suitable job if they’re too busy working full time minimum wage let alone two part time minimum wage jobs? What are they suppose to do in the intermediate between working the minimum wage job and landing a stable one? Starve?
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
denkmoon 5y ago
Anyone who works 40 hours a week deserves a comfortable life.
- atatatat 5y ago
  What if they're working for a startup that rings radio stations for free concert tickets and resells them?
  - Jcowell 5y ago
    So? I don’t see the point of going down such a rabbit whole as if all jobs or even all high paying jobs are morally acceptable. I’m sure a VP at Exxon does a lot to earn their bread. They’re still apart if a piece of shit company that puts all of humanity in danger with their actions and lies.
  - denkmoon 5y ago
    The moral value of the employer is mostly irrelevant when discussing the remuneration of the employee. I can see the case for disallowing a business from performing unethical actions like that, but so long as that business is legally allowed to exist, yes, anyone who works there for a full time work week should have a comfortable life.
  - c0nducktr 5y ago
    Sounds like the startup is the problem here, not the employee.

I think minimum wage is supposed to enable you to move up and not a wage where you can lead a comfortable life. It's expected that a single person on minimum wage can't get a two bedroom house.

MauroIksem 5y ago

That was not the original intention of minimum wage. Also consider how long it would take a person to "move up" from minimum wage to a liveable one.

wizardofmysore 5y ago
Got it. I don't know if all jobs can give such a wage. Perhaps we need to define what it would mean to live a minimal comfortable life. I think it's fair to ensure people get good opportunities.
- Jcowell 5y ago
  If a job cannot afford to give its employees a livable wage then it does not deserve to exists. It’s similar to a Restaurant that cannot adhere to safety standards does not deserve to operate.

completelylegit 5y ago

Attitudes like this make life especially difficult for single mothers in low income brackets.

wizardofmysore 5y ago
I do understand that it's hard for single mothers to live on minimum wage. We do need to consider the implications of giving minimum wage to all however. Not that I'm opposed to it but just not sure if it will help majority in the long run.
- Jcowell 5y ago
  Can you elaborate on this? Anyone and everyone has access to minimum wage jobs baring very certain exceptions. What’s the difference ?

acharp 5y ago

2 bedroom is absurd to expect at minimum wage, but it says the price for a 1 bedroom is at ~$20. Yeah I agree, minimum wage is the floor, but it should still be possible to live.

denkmoon 5y ago
Do poor families not need separate bedrooms?
alephu5 5y ago
I'm pretty sure you could get a 2-bed home with minimum wage 70 years ago, so I suppose you're saying that it's absurd to expect societies to advance and make life easier.

hug 5y ago

From FDR, the guy responsible for establishing the wage floor: > no business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country. > By ‘business’ I mean the whole of commerce as well as the whole of industry; by workers I mean all workers, the white collar class as well as the men in overalls; and by living wages I mean more than a bare subsistence level — I mean the wages of decent living So no, the minimum wage is supposed to be a living wage, but has fallen far from its inception. You can argue whether it's necessary that we have a minimum wage, but not what it was conceived for.

wizardofmysore 5y ago
I see, I did not know that. I thought it was a means to ensure someone who doesn't have a good job gets a minimum amount of wage till they find something stable.
- Jcowell 5y ago
  Even then I don’t get the point of this. Where would one find the time to get the qualifications for a more suitable job if they’re too busy working full time minimum wage let alone two part time minimum wage jobs? What are they suppose to do in the intermediate between working the minimum wage job and landing a stable one? Starve?

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

denkmoon 5y ago

Anyone who works 40 hours a week deserves a comfortable life.

atatatat 5y ago
What if they're working for a startup that rings radio stations for free concert tickets and resells them?
- Jcowell 5y ago
  So? I don’t see the point of going down such a rabbit whole as if all jobs or even all high paying jobs are morally acceptable. I’m sure a VP at Exxon does a lot to earn their bread. They’re still apart if a piece of shit company that puts all of humanity in danger with their actions and lies.
- denkmoon 5y ago
  The moral value of the employer is mostly irrelevant when discussing the remuneration of the employee. I can see the case for disallowing a business from performing unethical actions like that, but so long as that business is legally allowed to exist, yes, anyone who works there for a full time work week should have a comfortable life.
- c0nducktr 5y ago
  Sounds like the startup is the problem here, not the employee.