Please help me understand how a $15 minimum wage is a good idea.

For one thing, the idea is to have a step increase to $15 over some years.

And are you OK with the $7.25 or are you arguing it should be lower?

You are absolutely right. It is absurd even to assume that it will be over the next 5 years. I think that setting a goal of a $10 federal minimum wage over the next few years is a positive step and encouraging cities and certain states to look setting minimum wages between $10-$15.

This makes way more sense.

If we want to look at setting minimum wage increases to $15 over the next 10-12 years I would be open to that, but you also can't predict economic stability over that time frame and would need to work in flexibility.

WhitePony wrote:

I live in a small Midwestern community where $350 can get you rent in a small 1 bedroom apartment and overall the cost of living is very low.

Raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 would have a huge financial impact on my town and a lot of local places would have to close their doors.

Why would someone think that is same minimum wage used for the big cities would also be the best fit for my small town?

Why exactly would "a lot of local places have to close their doors"? That's simply not true.

The current minimum wage is more than enough. If you can't figure out how to live on $7.xx then $15 isn't going to make a difference.

No self-respecting republican would take wages of any sort. All the money should go to business owners and CEOs. The money will trickle down from the top to the workers. All republicans should work for free.

L L wrote:

For one thing, the idea is to have a step increase to $15 over some years.

And are you OK with the $7.25 or are you arguing it should be lower?

I certainly would not be in favor of lowering the minimum wage.

All I know is that in my town someone working 40 hours a week at minimum wage could afford a small apartment and groceries and have a little left over.

They certainly would be living paycheck to paycheck and would not have money for luxuries, but that is that is why it is the minimum wage, it is a starting point.

I know someone could not live off the minimum wage in larger cities, but why should we all have the same set minimum wage when it doesn't have the same buying power across the nation?

Lib Rules wrote:

Why exactly would "a lot of local places have to close their doors"? That's simply not true.

Well according to my friend that own a business in my town, "we hardly have enough money to afford paying the employees $7.50, there is no way we could pay them $15."

He owns and runs a local fast food restaurant, not a chain, where he employees several of the high school runners on my team. Great guy that just love helping out our community, but simply does not have the money to afford paying the employees much more unless he drastically raises his prices.

Odds are wrote:

The current minimum wage is more than enough. If you can't figure out how to live on $7.xx then $15 isn't going to make a difference.

The Odds are... you're a troll. Doubling - or more than doubling - someone's salary makes an enormous difference regardless of rate.

Really, doubling your salary wouldn't help you?

If you are referring to Bernie's bill, it plans to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020. By 2020, $15 will barely enough to live on (no the fed interest rate can't stay at 0 forever). Shouldn't it be incumbent upon employers to shoulder the cost of providing a living wage instead of relying on welfare and food stamps to make up the difference. Essentially these programs that were meant to help people pick themselves up, have been turned into a giant corporate subsidy for Walmart and the like.

The minimum wage is, and always will be, $0/hr. Anyone doing $1 worth of work/hour should be paid $1.

Each state and locality does have their own minimum wage and it is set higher in different place.

So, we don't "all have the same set minimum wage"

The federal minimum wage is the lowest any state or locality can set their wage.

If you agree in having any minimum wage you must agree that it should go up over time as average wages and overall production goes up.

Here is a historical chart on the minimum wage:

http://www.dol.gov/featured/minimum-wage/chart1

The minimum wage was more valuable in the 60s and 70s than today.

Yes. $15 would be way out of whack, historically if it was in effect right now.

I think minimum wage type jobs should be reserved for part time work anyway.

Students working for pocket cash, seniors or a spouse for additional household income.

Really poor attempt to shrink the pay gap. Only creates a negative incentive to hire workers. Will increase unemployment and standard of living for those who survive layoffs, but will that increase in standard of living offset the economical cost of those laid off? Doubtful. Laissez faire, baby... Only way to do it.

If the minimum wage was 15, no one would have incentive to better themselves. We'd create an army of unmotivated, useless McDonald's professionals

Rojo, not all of us were born with a Silver Spoon in the mouth and a Trust Fund.

I agree with you that minimum wage should be different in different areas. I am currently sharing a 2 bedroom, 1 bath apartment in Minneapolis and together my roommate and I pay 1100 a month not including utilities.

I have a friend in San Diego, and there you are looking at 2k for a 1 bedroom 1 bath apartment.

Minimum wage should also change with inflation and any minimum wage law should include some mechanism for this.

L L wrote:

If you agree in having any minimum wage you must agree that it should go up over time as average wages and overall production goes up.

Yes I agree if it is set in line with an actual living wage, but my concern is for the small business owners, I know giants such as Wal-Mart can afford to pay their employees more, but what about the small locally owned businesses.

$7.50 is a living wage where I live, why should we be forced to raise our minimum wage just because people cannot live on that wage in other parts of the country?

A $15 minimum wage would force a lot of the unique businesses in my town to close their doors and would leave us with just the big box stores, which will then have a monopoly on goods in our area.

How would you like to get paid 1/2 your worth. It's slavery.

You dumb ass wrote:

How would you like to get paid 1/2 your worth. It's slavery.

What do you mean? Who defines your worth?

There should be no wages for any workers. Everything needs to go to the people who own the businesses. Jobs will be created when business owners become richer. Sure, in the short term, workers will starve. But eventually, the wealth will trickle down.