When the RIghtwing thinks of $15 per hour, they see it as a symbol of hard work and skilled labor. The problem with this is that in today’s economy, $15 per hour is a meager wage that in places like Cali or NY still amounts to poverty. Wages for the poor are way behind on the rise of cost of living. As a point of reference, the last time someone could get by on $10.00 per hour was in the 1960s. In fact, if the minimum wage had kept up with the rate of inflation, it should be $20.00 per hour. Now you can make the argument that the government shouldn’t raise the min wage, but that wouldn’t change the fact that $20 per hour is what single people need to live on nationwide. (And no, I am not suggesting we just magically make the min wage $20 per hour).
Now, of course, cons will say “well those people should just learn new skills and get a better job!” The problem with this, however, is that the average age of a fast food worker is 35. This isn’t entirely by choice - it’s just the most readily available job one can get. Higher wage jobs in this country are extremely competitive. Low wage jobs greatly outnumber higher wage jobs. This means millions of workers have NO CHOICE but to accept shit paying jobs. More importantly, if these people are making shit wages, how the hell could they find the time and money to learn new skills to get better paying jobs? That is part of the cycle of poverty.
One final point: I’ve never worked fast food, but like many, I’ve been a customer to these businesses. We all know these people just don’t stand around “flipping burgers and dunking fries”. That is a big oversimplification of the job. They all have to take turns running the drive thru, the front registers, and prepare food. It’s non-stop labor from the start of their shift to the end. On top of that, they have to deal with the biggest kind of asshole customers on the planet.
Grampa Murked U
Now, of course, cons will say “well those people should just learn new skills and get a better job!” The problem with this, however, is that the average age of a fast food worker is 35. This isn’t entirely by choice - it’s just the most readily available job one can get. Higher wage jobs in this country are extremely competitive. Low wage jobs greatly outnumber higher wage jobs. This means millions of workers have NO CHOICE but to accept shit paying jobs. More importantly, if these people are making shit wages, how the hell could they find the time and money to learn new skills to get better paying jobs? That is part of the cycle of poverty.
One final point: I’ve never worked fast food, but like many, I’ve been a customer to these businesses. We all know these people just don’t stand around “flipping burgers and dunking fries”. That is a big oversimplification of the job. They all have to take turns running the drive thru, the front registers, and prepare food. It’s non-stop labor from the start of their shift to the end. On top of that, they have to deal with the biggest kind of asshole customers on the planet.
Grampa Murked U