The minimum wage
Don Thompson, CEO of McDonald's, is getting $13.8 million in pay, bonuses, and perks, up from $4.1 million. The previous CEO, Jim Skinner, had a package that was $27.7 million, up from $8.8 million the year before. Skinner was part of an executive group that structured these pay increases. Now remember, this is just the CEO; The hundreds of other executives make millions too.
I think these pay increases are ridiculous - especially with what is going on in the industry right now in regards to the minimum wage. I DO think people should make more per hour at the minimum, but we have to really think over the numbers before we jump to $15 a hour. The executives at Walmart and McDonald's are not making it easy, though.
I don't buy into the increase to the minimum wage to $15 an hour as such because the cost of living would rise to compensate, thus undermining the entire reason for increasing the minimum wage. That would directly impact everyone because those who make more than minimum wage would not see a pay increase but their rents would go up, the price of food would go up, and everything would go up, which would essentially make those people poorer. It's not the wealthy people, those making $500 thousand or more, who would be adversely affected, it would be the people making $25,000 a year, or $50,000 or $100,000. That's something that people don't seem to understand.
Yes, landlords would raise rents and housing prices would skyrocket. if you don't think they would, you are deluding yourself. My rent has gone up because people have lost their houses and are coming back to apartments, which makes a "supply and demand" situation; More demand, higher rent.
It's not as simple as simply raising the minimum wage.
There has to be some serious work done on rent control and some form of cost of living control before we can jump from $7.25 to $15.00 a hour. That's hard to do in a capitalistic society. People will charge what other people are willing to, or have to pay.
I know some people who are servers at restaurants who make about $25,000 a year with pay and tips. They make $2.13 an hour as a base pay before tips, but what most people don't understand is that servers make that $2.13 an hour only if they accumulate enough tips to at least make the minimum wage. If their tips don't add up to the hourly minimum wage in a pay period the restaurant must cover the shortfall to put them up to the minimum wage. Most servers don't know that. So, if the minimum wage was $15 a hour for a full time server at 40 hours a week that would be around $31,000 a year that a restaurant would be obligated to pay if the tips don't add up. You think the price of your Cobb Salad at Macaroni Grill wouldn't go up dramatically? Sure it would! I believe a great many smaller restaurants would go out of business and chain restaurants would start closing lower performing stores.
Again, it's not as simple as simply raising the minimum wage.
There is no easy answer to this.
~Symian
I think these pay increases are ridiculous - especially with what is going on in the industry right now in regards to the minimum wage. I DO think people should make more per hour at the minimum, but we have to really think over the numbers before we jump to $15 a hour. The executives at Walmart and McDonald's are not making it easy, though.
I don't buy into the increase to the minimum wage to $15 an hour as such because the cost of living would rise to compensate, thus undermining the entire reason for increasing the minimum wage. That would directly impact everyone because those who make more than minimum wage would not see a pay increase but their rents would go up, the price of food would go up, and everything would go up, which would essentially make those people poorer. It's not the wealthy people, those making $500 thousand or more, who would be adversely affected, it would be the people making $25,000 a year, or $50,000 or $100,000. That's something that people don't seem to understand.
Yes, landlords would raise rents and housing prices would skyrocket. if you don't think they would, you are deluding yourself. My rent has gone up because people have lost their houses and are coming back to apartments, which makes a "supply and demand" situation; More demand, higher rent.
It's not as simple as simply raising the minimum wage.
There has to be some serious work done on rent control and some form of cost of living control before we can jump from $7.25 to $15.00 a hour. That's hard to do in a capitalistic society. People will charge what other people are willing to, or have to pay.
I know some people who are servers at restaurants who make about $25,000 a year with pay and tips. They make $2.13 an hour as a base pay before tips, but what most people don't understand is that servers make that $2.13 an hour only if they accumulate enough tips to at least make the minimum wage. If their tips don't add up to the hourly minimum wage in a pay period the restaurant must cover the shortfall to put them up to the minimum wage. Most servers don't know that. So, if the minimum wage was $15 a hour for a full time server at 40 hours a week that would be around $31,000 a year that a restaurant would be obligated to pay if the tips don't add up. You think the price of your Cobb Salad at Macaroni Grill wouldn't go up dramatically? Sure it would! I believe a great many smaller restaurants would go out of business and chain restaurants would start closing lower performing stores.
Again, it's not as simple as simply raising the minimum wage.
There is no easy answer to this.
~Symian