The "New" Minimum Wage - $70k

keith99 said:

I'll see your 70K and Raise you 365K!

https://www.spotrac.com/blog/nfl-minimum-salaries-for-2015-and-the-veteran-cap-benefit-rule/

Click to expand...

I'll see your $365K for NFL and raise you to $575K for the NHL.

I live on Social Security, food benefits, medicaid, and public housing allotment (total is less than the $12K Aphrodite gets). That's what old age and health problems lead to. Of course, I paid my taxes so this is not welfare. I much prefer to be working and having well above minimum wages. But as it says in the Bible, a man can have NOTHING unless God gives it to him.

Why don't we deposit 1 billion dollars in everyones bank accounts and see if that fixes the problem?

It's not the QUANTITY of money that matters, instead, it is the VALUE of money over time that matters.

Every $1 you earn today should buy you the same amount of goods tommorow.

We should find out why the value of money is not stable.

It seems things may be coming apart at the firm where this started. Some of their better people are leaving, including one who did quite well but who now sees slackers doing just as well and his long term prospects diminishing.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/comp...uit-because-of-it/ar-BBlhrAI?ocid=mailsignout

keith99 said:

It seems things may be coming apart at the firm where this started. Some of their better people are leaving, including one who did quite well but who now sees slackers doing just as well and his long term prospects diminishing.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/comp...uit-because-of-it/ar-BBlhrAI?ocid=mailsignout

Click to expand...

Interesting. The reward isn't in the amount of money one makes but in the disparity between one's salary and that of those of lesser standing. Shades of the Parable of the Hired Workers. LOL

Glass*Soul said:

Interesting. The reward isn't in the amount of money one makes but in the disparity between one's salary and that of those of lesser standing. Shades of the Parable of the Hired Workers. LOL

Click to expand...

Except in this case people who had been there a long time and put in long hours did not get the raise they otherwise would have.

A business owner is free to do that and those who work harder are free to work elsewhere.

One thing that really struck me is that one of the people who quit was their web designer. His pay went up from $41,000 to $50,000. Eiher of those seems low to me.

morse86 said:

Why don't we deposit 1 billion dollars in everyones bank accounts and see if that fixes the problem?

It's not the QUANTITY of money that matters, instead, it is the VALUE of money over time that matters.

Every $1 you earn today should buy you the same amount of goods tommorow.

We should find out why the value of money is not stable.

Click to expand...

Heck, at my age I would settle for a mere million dollars!

morse86 said:

Why don't we deposit 1 billion dollars in everyones bank accounts and see if that fixes the problem...We should find out why the value of money is not stable.

Click to expand...

It's Gutenberg's fault.

In regards to the OP, if an employer voluntarily institutes that kind of policy, and his company has the kind of revenue that allows him to do that, obviously I take no issue with that.

If it were the government telling him he had to pay them $70k/year, that's when I would have an issue with it.

The issue I have with minimum wage laws is that it fails to acknowledge that all business models are different...and while Walmart could handle a minimum wage increase to $12/hour with only a $0.11 weekly increase to its customers. Mom & Pops don't do the kind of volume that would allow them to absorb that kind of increase as gracefully as a Walmart or a Target could.

The people who advocate a sharp increase in the federal minimum wage often cite one of the chief reasons as being to make it fair for the workers so they don't get abused by "Big Box Tyrants" like Walmart, yet a mandated minimum wage increase actually helps big box stores by making it harder for the smaller business to compete with them. So, a minimum wage increase actually ends up hurting one of the groups that they specifically intend to protect (that group being, small business owners)

I can provide a real world example.
(and this is 100% true)

I have a friend who owns a small bolt & fastener company. A very small operation that services regional shops. It's my friend, 2 floor managers, and 26 employees. He makes ~$85k, his two managers ~$50k, and the employees on the floor make $10-$12/hour + x1.5 OT when applicable (depending on how long they've been there)...he does provide health benefits to his employees...so all & all, he's a pretty fair business owner. With the minimum wage where it's at now, it doesn't impact him since he already pays well above that. However, if the minimum wage was increase to $15/hour tomorrow, that would definitely have a negative impact.

If that happened tomorrow, that would increase his costs by ~$160,000/year.

Here would be his options to cover those costs.
He could lay off 1 manager, and 3 of his 26 floor workers in addition to giving himself a $5k pay cut to offset the cost
He could scale back their hours (so that they're technically making the same amount, just working fewer hours per week)
Increase his price per unit by enough to offset the new cost

Each of these things either negatively impacts him or his employees...or makes him less competitive with larger state & national companies.

To me, the argument of minimum wage vs. no minimum wage is a very different debate than the idea of a swift change to the existing minimum wage.

One can make reasoned arguments for or against the concept of our existing minimum wage laws...however, I don't see how anyone could deny the negative impact of a sharp minimum wage increase overnight as it pertains to small businesses (especially in rural areas)

LittleLambofJesus said:

Heck, at my age I would settle for a mere million dollars!

Click to expand...

...and the next time you go to McDonald's, a Big Mac is going to cost $600 lol.

(Because nobody is going to flip a burger if they've got a million dollars)

As might have been expected, the company is now nearing collapse as a result of this policy.

http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/02/ceo-who-raised-minimum-salary-to-70k-falls-on-hard-times/

Albion said:

As might have been expected, the company is now nearing collapse as a result of this policy.

http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/02/ceo-who-raised-minimum-salary-to-70k-falls-on-hard-times/

Click to expand...

it looks like how he raised his company's minimum wage to afford it is causing his problems. Why is this guy renting out a house to cover his bills? If you're going to take a pay cut for the little guy, as noble as that is, you better learn to change your lifestyle to accommodate the lesser income. It looks like he didn't think this thing through.

keith99 said:

It seems a bit ironic considering the business he is in. E.g. a business that produces nothing one that processes credit card payments.

Click to expand...

How ironic is it that a processing service is defined as "producing nothing"?

ChristsSoldier115 said:

it looks like how he raised his company's minimum wage to afford it is causing his problems. Why is this guy renting out a house to cover his bills? If you're going to take a pay cut for the little guy, as noble as that is, you better learn to change your lifestyle to accommodate the lesser income. It looks like he didn't think this thing through.

Click to expand...

I agree that there are a few items in the story that don't seen to be a necessary consequence of his plan, but I certainly can understand the people in management or who have been with the company a long time thinking that it's not fair to give the newest hires 70K, just like that, when they themselves may get a small or negligible raise because they're nearer that salary already.

keith99 said:

Except in this case people who had been there a long time and put in long hours did not get the raise they otherwise would have.

A business owner is free to do that and those who work harder are free to work elsewhere.

One thing that really struck me is that one of the people who quit was their web designer. His pay went up from $41,000 to $50,000. Eiher of those seems low to me.

Click to expand...

That isn't how I read it. From what I understood, the senior people were upset because they weren't making as much more than they used to. For example, the web designer got a $9000 raise -- yet that wasn't enough because some others "got more."

It sounds to me that all of them got at least the raise the would have normally received. I believe they even received a bit more than they normally would have, but were upset because they didn't get as much of a raise (since they were already near or over $70,000) than some got to bring them up to $70,000. They looked at it from how much less they were getting in comparison to others in the company, rather than comparing how much they were getting to what people with similar experience were getting at similar companies. I suspect many (or most) of those that quit are struggling to get more money, or even equal money, at another company.

As for the web designer, it seems fairly obvious that he is a part time worker. For example, the fact that, after the raise, he still only made $50,000 -- when there is a $70,000 minimum -- largely proves he was not a full time worker. I'm guessing that, if he worked full time, the web designer would be making a minimum of $100,000.

Maren said:

That isn't how I read it. From what I understood, the senior people were upset because they weren't making as much more than they used to. For example, the web designer got a $9000 raise -- yet that wasn't enough because some others "got more."

It sounds to me that all of them got at least the raise the would have normally received. I believe they even received a bit more than they normally would have, but were upset because they didn't get as much of a raise (since they were already near or over $70,000) than some got to bring them up to $70,000. They looked at it from how much less they were getting in comparison to others in the company, rather than comparing how much they were getting to what people with similar experience were getting at similar companies. I suspect many (or most) of those that quit are struggling to get more money, or even equal money, at another company.

As for the web designer, it seems fairly obvious that he is a part time worker. For example, the fact that, after the raise, he still only made $50,000 -- when there is a $70,000 minimum -- largely proves he was not a full time worker. I'm guessing that, if he worked full time, the web designer would be making a minimum of $100,000.

Click to expand...

There were 2 places in the article that talked about the comparative raises. One can be read they way you see it, but this one pretty much can only be read one way. That those doing the most work got little or nothing.

Gravity lost two of its most valuable employees whose departure was “spurred in part by their view that it was unfair to double the pay of some new hires while the longest-serving staff members got small or no raises.”

Click to expand...

People who are qualified and work hard at jobs they've had for years tend to not like it when people walk in the door and get the same perks they worked years for.

Who knew?

I read this story, but found no credible news source that ran this story.
Seems like only right wing news media is the only one running it. (Even Fox didn't mention it.)
If it were true, wouldn't other sources mention it? Is every other news source that bias? Even Fox news? The other media didn't consider it news?
I can't help but wonder if they didn't exaggerate the story?


If true this would destroy fair wage people. Everyone would be so happy if everyone made __ dollars an hour.
Sadly no. When the minimum wage goes up, it swallows up all the jobs up to that point, making every job a minimum wage job. Very few get a raise to get them above minimum wage, and every step above minimum is now one step closer to minimum wage.
The people that work hard are angry because the lazy slob that does minimal gets the same pay as they do.
The people that worked the longest are upset because the newbies are making the same as them.
I do believe minimum wage should be increased, not to $15/hr, but closer to $1.50-$2 an hour more. Not because people can't live on minimum wage(it was not meant to be lived on), but because the cost of living is higher now then when t was raised last time.

Don't like minimum wage? Make yourself worth more then the majority of people looking for work, with education, experience, job ethic, attitude etc. If you make it so they want you around working, they will want to pay to keep you. If you could be replaced by 20 other people on the street, you aren't worth more then minimum wage.

Billnew said:

I read this story, but found no credible news source that ran this story.
Seems like only right wing news media is the only one running it. (Even Fox didn't mention it.)
If it were true, wouldn't other sources mention it? Is every other news source that bias? Even Fox news? The other media didn't consider it news?
I can't help but wonder if they didn't exaggerate the story?


If true this would destroy fair wage people. Everyone would be so happy if everyone made __ dollars an hour.
Sadly no. When the minimum wage goes up, it swallows up all the jobs up to that point, making every job a minimum wage job. Very few get a raise to get them above minimum wage, and every step above minimum is now one step closer to minimum wage.
The people that work hard are angry because the lazy slob that does minimal gets the same pay as they do.
The people that worked the longest are upset because the newbies are making the same as them.
I do believe minimum wage should be increased, not to $15/hr, but closer to $1.50-$2 an hour more. Not because people can't live on minimum wage(it was not meant to be lived on), but because the cost of living is higher now then when t was raised last time.

Don't like minimum wage? Make yourself worth more then the majority of people looking for work, with education, experience, job ethic, attitude etc. If you make it so they want you around working, they will want to pay to keep you. If you could be replaced by 20 other people on the street, you aren't worth more then minimum wage.

Click to expand...

Just what do you consider a credible source? Is Forbes or The New York Times good enough?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidbu...um-salaries-isnt-enough-for-gravity-payments/

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/b...klash-against-the-raise-that-roared.html?_r=1