Owners are limited by franchise agreements to what they can charge, as well as limited by what the market will bear. As wages got pushed lower and lower in fast

Owners are limited by franchise agreements to what they can charge, as well as limited by what the market will bear. As wages got pushed lower and lower in fast food, QSC declined dramatically. Owners have already invested a lot in automation (steps that ironically have damaged quality), and there's only so much blood you can squeeze out. The issue isn't that owners will fare worse, but that raising the min wage while it makes us feel good won't necessarily help lower income workers. Doubling the salary of an entry level position will only reduce the number of entry level positions. And as I'm sure your experience in fast food illustrated, there's some people who aren't even worth paying min wage. Except for a few management folks, it shouldn't be a long term job or career.