I agree.

Divided.

I´m not so sure that those who have a minimum wage job would agree. The federal minimum wage is $5.15, that´s basically nothing! In the UK it´s $9.50, in France $10.70. I know that some states pay more than $5.15, but that´s still not "huge".

My mum has a property which is neither huge nor small (boundries are 1.5km x 4km), that is located west north west of Sydney located at Colo Heights which is about 2 to 2.5 hours drive from Sydney CBD. She is spending thousands of dollars on additional new water tanks because the dry spells are so long and in the past she has had to have water trucked in. This is all despite the fact the property has 4-6 tanks of varying size with the main house one being bigger than a normal sized swimming pool. If I knew of a rain dance I would have been on the first flight back home from England and up to Colo to do my dance. ;)

U-533,

Can you please provide evidence to support your assertion? How did you come to such a conclusion? Look forward to your evidence based reply. Thanks.

Yeah, $5.15 is way too much. i can feel the bile rising in my throat.

I mean how dare they?

I've worked for minimum wage. Those jobs aren't designed for someone to be able live comfortably. They're secondary jobs or jobs for kids. $10.70? Why should a company have to pay an employee that much? That just means that the costs of their service will skyrocket.

You aren't entitiled to anything. You have to work for it. There are plenty of programs available for poor people to go to college and work their way up. Sure, a lot of people get college degrees and new cars handed to them by their parents, but that doesn't mean that everyone deserves those things, just that life is unfair.

I should also note that these kinds of decisions should be left up to the states. It's not for the Federal Government to decide.

Minimum wage hasn't nationaly been raised in ten years. Its from $5.15 per hour to $7.25 per hour over a two year period.
What people are entitled too is a fair wage and don't say employers pay what people are worth. Most pay the least they can legally get away with. You talk like a minimum wage earner is a piece of s#!t.
It's better holding a job then no job at all. What would life be like without minimum wage job holders? Someone has to do them.
A fair number of states have raised their minimum wage because the fed wouldn't. Try living in Connecticut on $5.15 an hour. It would be impossible. You can't even get a 14 year old babysitter for that.

Heavily edited to keep my opinion on those comments to myself.

Remember when I asked not to try and "correct" someone elses point of view? That simply leads to a back and forth argument which leads to an all out angry furious typing contest. I know it is so hard not to start shxt with someone you don't agree with, but please try!:roll:

Just for you so you won't be disappointed I'll put my :sunny: face on.

As I wrote that´s what they pay in France.

Be nice, ok?

No, not comfortably, but someone who has to work a minimum wage job for 160 hours a months should at least earn enough money so that he or she is above the poverty line. For millions of people such jobs are the only source of income.

Even now that they´ve raised it to $7.25 that´s still only a yearly income of roughly $13k.

Which is more than the illegal immigrants can make in their own countries. I see the increase as making our illegal immigration problem worse than it already is.

Very few people work for minimum wage in this country. Mainly, illegals, secondary school students, and those that choose to work for that pay. In the summer of 1979 I worked at a bakery, as a summer replacement at the rate of $7.50/hr. Even McDonalds pays more than minimum wage today.

Two problems with minimum wage increase:

1. increase in minimum wage increase the cost of things to cover this increase thus leaving said minimum wage earner in the same predicament.

2. increase in minimum wage often makes these wage earners loose jobs. The business owners soon discover that any of the others in the office can do the job of the minimum wage earner is doing and off he goes. All of a sudden the salaried guy can do what the hourly guy is doing. I have seen it many times.

If the lowest pay possible puts you above the poverty line, then how can there be a poverty line? I think there will always be those who are poor in a capitalist society.
Isn't that the job of the states, though? I mean, if you can nationally legislate everything, what exactly is the point in having separate states? All that will happen with this is that the rent that these people pay will go up, the price of food will go up, and they'll be at the same quality of living that they're at now. The people that will be affected most is those who now make $7/hr. They'll go from 35% above minimum wage to being at minimum wage.
I disagree. They're entitled to what the market will pay. Of course, this is just my opinion.
I don't see where you got that from. Like I said, I used to live on $6/hr. Rent, power, food, insurance, I paid all of it. Did it suck? Like you can't imagine. I decided that I was tired of it, so I worked hard, got a college degree, took jobs with long hours and unforgiving bosses so that I could build up a resume. Now I make a pretty comfortable wage.
If no one will work them, the places will raise their pay. After Hurricane Katrina Walmart went from paying $6/hr to $9.50/hr here and they're only recently getting enough people to work to keep the store open. When they aren't open, they lose money, so it's in their interest to pay well.
My point is that it isn't the Federal Government's job to set a minimum wage. It may take $15/hr to live comfortably where you do, but it might be possible to live comfortably on $8/hr in West Virginia. That's why if they're going to be set, the states should set them.
We're all adults here. I'm not angry and I'm not going to fly off the handle. These are all my opinions and if I were presented with new information, I might change my opinion. My mind is always open to new views on old subjects.

Try to feed two or even three mouths with that $13k, then there are taxes and perhaps even health insurance. That should make you poor enough... ;)

see below

That goes to personal responsibility. If you cannot afford to feed two or three mouths why are you bringing them into the world?[/quote]

There are many, many more scenarios than just "You have a lousy job, are already poor, but still wanted the children". The second mouth to feed to could also be a sick brother/sister/mother/father, or you lost a good job, can´t find a new good job, have two children and now you have to take a minimum wage job. Use your imagination and you´ll find dozens of possible scenarios.

[/quote]

Poverty breeds poverty. Not my opinion. We see it every day. It is a bad cycle. Yeah, you can ask me to show proof, blah blah blah....I don't have too, go look at the larger cities across the US. You tell me.

Your right, it is personal responsiblity. Furthermore, 13k would quailfy you for Child Tax Credit. Basically, you pay no taxes. As far as health insurance.....they just show up to the emergency rooms and do not pay. What, is the hospital going to turn them away? NO. It is a freebie world on Uncle Sam if you know how to work the system correctly.

Yes it is. The standard of living dictates cost but what the fed does is set the bar.
I respect you for that but your comments came across as kind of snobby. Because you pulled yourself up by the bootstraps doesn't mean that everybody can. The motivations or lack thereof of people could be a topic by itself.
That is because of the situation, population, and cost of living. I'm sure a loaf of bread doesn't cost what it did pre Katrina.
I'm not fluent in economics but there has to be guidelines to go by.
More jobs less people = higher pay.
Less jobs more people = lower pay. <= That is where you have to have a limit. Ten applicants for one Kmart job, the manager is going to go real low on pay.

I'm an adult but I reserve the right to throw tantrums.