Minimum Wage?
Nov 15, 2014 12:32:22 #
Ah, minimum wage! How great and wonderful you are! (NOT!!) I just had an encounter with a minimum-wage minion that was far less than ideal. On Saturday mornings I usually go to the local establishment known far and wide by its golden arches and standard food fare that is common far and wide. Standing about third in line, waiting patiently for the one and only server to process the orders of the patrons in line, I was in a pretty good frame of mind. As she finished taking the order of the person in front of me, she looked me in the eye with what i discerned as a look of disdain or disrespect, turned away and stepped into to kitchen area. I and several people behind me were left unattended. Not a big deal as long as someone steps forward to tend to business. A couple minutes later she returns with the same attitude as when she stepped away and gives me a little eyebrow gesture without speaking as if to say, Why are you still here? What do you want?
With gusto and sincerity I said, Good morning! How are you today?
She looked at me with that dead-eye stare like I was less than adequate and replied, Fine. What do you want?
I placed my order, repeating it twice. She still got it wrong. Upon stepping away from the counter, I discovered that she had not provided me with dinnerware or salt and pepper. So I stopped and waited for her to come back and see what I wanted - approximately two minutes. When she returned I got that same look only a bit more intense. When I informed her that I did not receive the dinnerware she simply handed me a set and turned away. No apology. No nothing. I was less than impressed.
I have described this scene not for the purpose of dissing on a minimum wage worker, but to elaborate on my position regarding minimum wage. The minimum wage in most of the US is $7.25 per hour and its even higher in some states. The state of Washington has it at $9.25.
My contention is there should be no minimum to the minimum wage. Capitalistic business practice is based upon the principle of supply and demand. Those two factors work together to drive the prices of products and services. A large supply (inventory) and a small demand (need) will result in low price. Conversely, great demand and short supply will naturally precipitate a high price. We see this principle at work every day. Fuel prices are governed by how much crude oil is produced coupled with the apparent transportation needs usually coupled with seasonal or timely events like holidays and vacation season. These seasonal demands drive the prices higher because the oil companies know that the public will pay more for the product even if the supply is plentiful.
The price of a product or service is necessarily dependent on the wages that are calculated into the equation. Everything is interrelated. For a product or service to SELL in the marketplace, its price must be FAIR. Fair is when the price is acceptable to the buyer based on his satisfaction. The price is always based upon the cost of producing the product with enough profit added to arrive at a competitive price to sell in the marketplace. Labor cost is a major factor in this equation. For a product to sell competitively the cost of the product to the seller must be lower than the market value in order for the seller to receive enough profit to continue doing business. When labor costs increase then to price at market naturally increases accordingly. The ideal is for the product to be WORTH its price. When any part of a products cost is inflated its market price increases too. If it doesnt then some portion of its cost must be reduced proportionately.
Increasing minimum wage to $15 per hour as many people have demanded would be counterproductive. Labor is only a portion of the total expense of a product but it is a major portion of it. Doubling minimum wage would necessarily result in a major increase in price or a major decrease in quality or quantity of the product. As my initial scene indicated, that minimum wage worker did nothing to enhance the value of the product. The value of her effort was FAR less than the $7.25 per hour she was probably being paid. If her pay were increased to $15 per hour her performance (in my estimation) would still remain less than adequate. But the value of the product would have to be adjusted to factor in her higher wage. This would result in one or more of the following:
Higher retail price;
Reduced product size;
Reduced workforce;
Poorer service.
Increasing the price at the market will dissuade people from making a purchase. Reducing the product size will disappoint the buyer, possibly to the point that the buyer will no longer purchase the product. The employer may decide to reduce the number of workers in order to maintain a reasonable labor expense. This will mean people will no longer be getting paid $7.25 per hour - their new pay rate is $0.00. This will also create harsher working conditions for those lucky enough to be getting paid $15 per hour because they will be required to increase their work load because of the reduced workforce. A natural result of this scenario is that service plummets. No one will have the time or energy to provide quality service.
The only true solution to the minimum wage issue is to abolish the government mandated requirement. Let the market determine to wage. When a free market society is encumbered with unfair requirements, the market AND society suffer. No one is being required to work at a specific business. The people searching for employment should be free to accept or refuse any pay offer from a prospective employer. Likewise all employers should be free to offer pay rates as low or high as they want without governmental interference. Being a free country, both sides should be free to accept or refuse any offer from the other. The principle of supply and demand should apply here as well. The employee can only blame himself if he is being paid less than he is worth to his employer. Likewise, the employer should never have to pay an employee more than he is worth. Governmental mandating of minimum wage is supposed to be a protection of the employee in entry-level positions. In actuality, it creates an entitlement attitude on the part of the workers by thinking they dont have to do anything and will still get paid that minimum wage.
In my humble opinion, any government mandated minimum wage order should be abolished. Employers could pay their employees what they are WORTH rather than what they are required. Prospective employees can refuse any pay offers they feel are less than their worth. This is a free country. Everyone should be free to accept or refuse without being hindered by mandates.
Now lets consider the effects of a minimum wage increase to $15 per hour. Most discussion is about the effect an increase will have on profits. Most businesses dont want their profits to be affected so a necessary consequence of such an action is increased retail prices across the board. Prices will not double because labor is only a portion of the overall price of production but they will increase significantly. While the minimum wage will result in a pay increase for everyone making less than the minimum wage, prices will increase for everyone. That translates to a reduction in the purchasing power of our currency. Though the pay is higher for the lower wage worker, the value of our currency is reduced tremendously.
My suggestion to all employers would be to pay your employees what they are WORTH. Reward them for dedicated service. Discharge them if they do not earn what you are paying them. Similarly, my suggestion to all employees would be to EARN what you are being paid. Strive to do better. Quit if your employer is not paying you fairly. In the end, everyone wins.
With gusto and sincerity I said, Good morning! How are you today?
She looked at me with that dead-eye stare like I was less than adequate and replied, Fine. What do you want?
I placed my order, repeating it twice. She still got it wrong. Upon stepping away from the counter, I discovered that she had not provided me with dinnerware or salt and pepper. So I stopped and waited for her to come back and see what I wanted - approximately two minutes. When she returned I got that same look only a bit more intense. When I informed her that I did not receive the dinnerware she simply handed me a set and turned away. No apology. No nothing. I was less than impressed.
I have described this scene not for the purpose of dissing on a minimum wage worker, but to elaborate on my position regarding minimum wage. The minimum wage in most of the US is $7.25 per hour and its even higher in some states. The state of Washington has it at $9.25.
My contention is there should be no minimum to the minimum wage. Capitalistic business practice is based upon the principle of supply and demand. Those two factors work together to drive the prices of products and services. A large supply (inventory) and a small demand (need) will result in low price. Conversely, great demand and short supply will naturally precipitate a high price. We see this principle at work every day. Fuel prices are governed by how much crude oil is produced coupled with the apparent transportation needs usually coupled with seasonal or timely events like holidays and vacation season. These seasonal demands drive the prices higher because the oil companies know that the public will pay more for the product even if the supply is plentiful.
The price of a product or service is necessarily dependent on the wages that are calculated into the equation. Everything is interrelated. For a product or service to SELL in the marketplace, its price must be FAIR. Fair is when the price is acceptable to the buyer based on his satisfaction. The price is always based upon the cost of producing the product with enough profit added to arrive at a competitive price to sell in the marketplace. Labor cost is a major factor in this equation. For a product to sell competitively the cost of the product to the seller must be lower than the market value in order for the seller to receive enough profit to continue doing business. When labor costs increase then to price at market naturally increases accordingly. The ideal is for the product to be WORTH its price. When any part of a products cost is inflated its market price increases too. If it doesnt then some portion of its cost must be reduced proportionately.
Increasing minimum wage to $15 per hour as many people have demanded would be counterproductive. Labor is only a portion of the total expense of a product but it is a major portion of it. Doubling minimum wage would necessarily result in a major increase in price or a major decrease in quality or quantity of the product. As my initial scene indicated, that minimum wage worker did nothing to enhance the value of the product. The value of her effort was FAR less than the $7.25 per hour she was probably being paid. If her pay were increased to $15 per hour her performance (in my estimation) would still remain less than adequate. But the value of the product would have to be adjusted to factor in her higher wage. This would result in one or more of the following:
Higher retail price;
Reduced product size;
Reduced workforce;
Poorer service.
Increasing the price at the market will dissuade people from making a purchase. Reducing the product size will disappoint the buyer, possibly to the point that the buyer will no longer purchase the product. The employer may decide to reduce the number of workers in order to maintain a reasonable labor expense. This will mean people will no longer be getting paid $7.25 per hour - their new pay rate is $0.00. This will also create harsher working conditions for those lucky enough to be getting paid $15 per hour because they will be required to increase their work load because of the reduced workforce. A natural result of this scenario is that service plummets. No one will have the time or energy to provide quality service.
The only true solution to the minimum wage issue is to abolish the government mandated requirement. Let the market determine to wage. When a free market society is encumbered with unfair requirements, the market AND society suffer. No one is being required to work at a specific business. The people searching for employment should be free to accept or refuse any pay offer from a prospective employer. Likewise all employers should be free to offer pay rates as low or high as they want without governmental interference. Being a free country, both sides should be free to accept or refuse any offer from the other. The principle of supply and demand should apply here as well. The employee can only blame himself if he is being paid less than he is worth to his employer. Likewise, the employer should never have to pay an employee more than he is worth. Governmental mandating of minimum wage is supposed to be a protection of the employee in entry-level positions. In actuality, it creates an entitlement attitude on the part of the workers by thinking they dont have to do anything and will still get paid that minimum wage.
In my humble opinion, any government mandated minimum wage order should be abolished. Employers could pay their employees what they are WORTH rather than what they are required. Prospective employees can refuse any pay offers they feel are less than their worth. This is a free country. Everyone should be free to accept or refuse without being hindered by mandates.
Now lets consider the effects of a minimum wage increase to $15 per hour. Most discussion is about the effect an increase will have on profits. Most businesses dont want their profits to be affected so a necessary consequence of such an action is increased retail prices across the board. Prices will not double because labor is only a portion of the overall price of production but they will increase significantly. While the minimum wage will result in a pay increase for everyone making less than the minimum wage, prices will increase for everyone. That translates to a reduction in the purchasing power of our currency. Though the pay is higher for the lower wage worker, the value of our currency is reduced tremendously.
My suggestion to all employers would be to pay your employees what they are WORTH. Reward them for dedicated service. Discharge them if they do not earn what you are paying them. Similarly, my suggestion to all employees would be to EARN what you are being paid. Strive to do better. Quit if your employer is not paying you fairly. In the end, everyone wins.
Nov 15, 2014 12:59:48 #
GeneS
Loc: Glendale,AZ
$15.00 minimum wage raises prices of everything. What about those of us on a fixed income? SS isn't going to go up and what about us disabled vets, will we get a raise in benefits
to make up for the cost of everything?
If they want $15.00 an hour let them get an education and a better job. When I was young those fast food jobs were for kids in college and still living at home . Not for supporting a family. Get a better job.
to make up for the cost of everything?
If they want $15.00 an hour let them get an education and a better job. When I was young those fast food jobs were for kids in college and still living at home . Not for supporting a family. Get a better job.
Nov 15, 2014 13:04:43 #
Well written Phil.
But, there are greedy and unscrupulous bosses out there
and a "minimum wage" helps protect honest workers.
I understand that some people dont deserve the job they
have. Like you I have been a victim of drop kicks, of
the like you unfortunately encountered at Maccas...
the boss is free to fire people of that ilk though and
if a decent wage is being offered there will be people
queuing up for the vacant position and the boss is free
to select the best candidate.
Australia wide the minimum wage is $16.87 per hour.
But, there are greedy and unscrupulous bosses out there
and a "minimum wage" helps protect honest workers.
I understand that some people dont deserve the job they
have. Like you I have been a victim of drop kicks, of
the like you unfortunately encountered at Maccas...
the boss is free to fire people of that ilk though and
if a decent wage is being offered there will be people
queuing up for the vacant position and the boss is free
to select the best candidate.
Australia wide the minimum wage is $16.87 per hour.
Nov 15, 2014 17:48:27 #
Bring on the robots. Then the POS counter people can change careers. Next time your at the fast food place, whichever, check out the tattoos, the long stupid nails, the hundred dollar hair dos. No wonder they can't make it.
Nov 15, 2014 18:26:08 #
GeneS wrote:
$15.00 minimum wage raises prices of everything. What about those of us on a fixed income? SS isn't going to go up and what about us disabled vets, will we get a raise in benefits
to make up for the cost of everything?
If they want $15.00 an hour let them get an education and a better job. When I was young those fast food jobs were for kids in college and still living at home . Not for supporting a family. Get a better job.
to make up for the cost of everything?
If they want $15.00 an hour let them get an education and a better job. When I was young those fast food jobs were for kids in college and still living at home . Not for supporting a family. Get a better job.
My sentiments exactly!
Nov 15, 2014 18:31:11 #
Shutter Bugger wrote:
Well written Phil. br br But, there are greedy an... (show quote)
The solution for the greedy & unscrupulous bosses is for people to choose NOT to work for them. There is never an easy fix to any of this but we can't let a minimum wage mandate harm the economy like it can!
The best thing we can do is bring back common sense!!!
Nov 15, 2014 23:16:15 #
You can get BAD service from anyone.
Their wage has NOTHING to do with it.
To make a blanket comment about minimum wage based on one person, is simplistic at best.
You might as well make a similiar comment about ALL CEOs wages because 1 CEO doing something stupid.
Their wage has NOTHING to do with it.
To make a blanket comment about minimum wage based on one person, is simplistic at best.
You might as well make a similiar comment about ALL CEOs wages because 1 CEO doing something stupid.
Nov 16, 2014 00:04:56 #
You can make minimum wage whatever you want, but unless you also have a maximum wage, it's pointless.
Nov 16, 2014 01:11:02 #
Maybe if they quit paying CEOs and other top executives outrageous salaries and benefits which aren't even related to how well the company is doing they could afford to pay workers a living wage. These CEOs all sit on each others' boards and vote each other higher and higher compensation.
Nov 16, 2014 06:01:37 #
GeneS wrote:
$15.00 minimum wage raises prices of everything. What about those of us on a fixed income? SS isn't going to go up and what about us disabled vets, will we get a raise in benefits
to make up for the cost of everything?
If they want $15.00 an hour let them get an education and a better job. When I was young those fast food jobs were for kids in college and still living at home . Not for supporting a family. Get a better job.
to make up for the cost of everything?
If they want $15.00 an hour let them get an education and a better job. When I was young those fast food jobs were for kids in college and still living at home . Not for supporting a family. Get a better job.
You can't be serious. Are you Kidding. No, we would not want someone else to get a raise. I of we don't get something, no one else should either, right? Oh, and tell them to get an education. Really? So you told them to get a better job AND get an education. I agree, however it doesn't happen that easy. So, how are they going to pay for that? This is one incident at one Mac & Dons'.SO because of that, all people who work for next to nothing are scums of the earth, need and education AND a better job? Jeese, no wonder our country is in such a mess. We need to work with these people who are willing to get up and go to work. At least they are not on welfare - Give them a break for showing up anyway. And since these people are strangling our country, where do you go out to eat? surely not McDonalds.All those people are freeloaders right?
For what it is worth, I respect you for your honor to our great country, but 'our' country needs your understanding and tolerance just as well.
Nov 16, 2014 07:41:15 #
chrisscholbe wrote:
You can get BAD service from anyone.
Their wage has NOTHING to do with it.
To make a blanket comment about minimum wage based on one person, is simplistic at best.
You might as well make a similiar comment about ALL CEOs wages because 1 CEO doing something stupid.
Their wage has NOTHING to do with it.
To make a blanket comment about minimum wage based on one person, is simplistic at best.
You might as well make a similiar comment about ALL CEOs wages because 1 CEO doing something stupid.
You just described the method many people use to solve any problem. Right now there is a discussion about the small pre-packaged laundry soap packets. In a population of 3 million plus a couple of hundred toddlers tried to eat the soap pods and got sick. Now there is a group that wants to ban them so no one can have them.
I have been treated poorly by a fast food worker and I have been treated quite well by other workers. It has nothing to do with the wage and everything to do with the attitude of the worker.
Nov 16, 2014 10:25:22 #
Catnlion
Loc: Arizona City, Arizona
JohnSwanda wrote:
Maybe if they quit paying CEOs and other top executives outrageous salaries and benefits which aren't even related to how well the company is doing they could afford to pay workers a living wage. These CEOs all sit on each others' boards and vote each other higher and higher compensation.
There are good and bad CEO s. Yes they earn a good deal of money at the top of the corporations. They got there because of the reason minimum wage employees are minimum wage employees. They have higher educations and did what was necessary to advance. They worked the 18 hour days, they moved to new locations when it provided the next step up.
Nov 16, 2014 10:52:09 #
Or....how about we reintroduce slavery? Those of us who can afford slaves would have a better life style. Businesses would have zero labor cost, so prices for products we buy would be far less. Business profits would soar.....EVERYONE BENEFITS.....well, except for the slaves....
Nov 16, 2014 10:56:57 #
Catnlion wrote:
There are good and bad CEO s. Yes they earn a good deal of money at the top of the corporations. They got there because of the reason minimum wage employees are minimum wage employees. They have higher educations and did what was necessary to advance. They worked the 18 hour days, they moved to new locations when it provided the next step up.
If you remember the original post talked about how minimum wage is a joke because of the poor service he received.
I don't care how educated or uneducated you are or how many hours you worked or didn't work......the service you receive has NOTHING to do with your wage.
Nov 16, 2014 11:22:39 #
filzfotoz wrote:
The solution for the greedy & unscrupulous bosses is for people to choose NOT to work for them. There is never an easy fix to any of this but we can't let a minimum wage mandate harm the economy like it can!
The best thing we can do is bring back common sense!!!
The best thing we can do is bring back common sense!!!
Australias minimum wage is more than
double yours... and Australia got through the GFC better
than the vast majority of the world. I cant say
our minimum wage is the reason for that, but obviously
it did not hurt.
I don't know about you but I have often experienced incompetence
the likes of which you have cited from people who's wages far exceed
the minimum, which kinda makes your argument there moot Phil.
And Phil you could not be stupid enough to think the shit service you got from the "minimum wage minion" would have been better if we paid your cashier at Maccas less?
"Bring back common sense" you say; when you are living proof that
common sense is far from common.
We moved away from common sense when we embraced "political
correctness" Phil, and when we let OH&S pander to the lowest common denominator...
as it is impossible to overestimate how low the lowest common denominator
can be; and that has turned many occupations into economic unfeasability.
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