I was wondering what the wage was in peoples area and where the average stood. In Alberta which is the highest paid province in Canada has one of the lowest at $6.10/hr. I think wages should start no lower than $10/hr!

$5.15 in MI

The US has a national minimum wage. It is not locally decided. $5.15/hr.

$7.25 on the highest in the country, and they are trying to raise it again.

$6.75 in California. Arnold just vetoed a bill to increase it by a dollar over the next two years.

$6.75 in Massachusetts. Ideally, it should be $0.

Hmm. Guess I was wrong.

The U.S. has a federal minimum wage of $5.15, but state or local governments can increase it. The California minimum wage is currently $6.75, but in San Francisco it's $8.50 because that slightly liberal city decided that it wanted something closer to a living wage.

The U.S. has a federal minimum wage of $5.15, but state or local governments can increase it.  The California minimum wage is currently $6.75, but in San Francisco it's $8.50 because that slightly liberal city decided that it wanted something closer to a living wage.

[post="29340"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

$8.50/hr isn't even a living wage at all.

slightly liberal city

[post="29340"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

:lol:

minimum wage is a precarious topic. on one hand you want to attract business to the US, on the other hand if your minimum wage is too high ... or your Europe... no1 wants to start up new business... its really a lose-lose situation

$6.75 in Massachusetts. Ideally, it should be $0.

[post="29331"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

quoted for truth. Having a minimum wage is just a useless attempt at not making people poor, but the more you raise it; the more you screw your city/state/nation

6 something here in NY State. It scares the hell out of me. I dont think young HS or college people could even pay their auto insurance off minimum wage let alone car payments and buy gas for the damn thing. minimum wage should be the equalivent weekly pay of the average monthly morgage in any giving area. woo hoo !!!!!!!!!!!!

6 something here in NY State. It scares the hell out of me. I dont think young HS or college people could even pay their auto insurance off minimum wage let alone car payments and buy gas for the damn thing.

minimum wage should be the equalivent weekly pay of the average monthly morgage in any giving area.

woo hoo !!!!!!!!!!!!

[post="29387"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

Except, when you raise the minimum wage, it raises all the other prices and thus makes them poor again even though they are making a higher minimum wage. It's a pleasant thought that everyone can make enough, but it just won't work.

Edited October 16, 200519 yr by lakefire

Washington State's minimum wage is currently $7.35/hr... It will be increased to $7.63/hr on Jan 1,2006. I believe we're the highest in the country.

Im not being a prick (this time) so dont take this wrong.

What you said from my view is " It's an unpleasant thought that everyone can't make enough".

And in responce to the inflation reality my view is "not in blind capitolism".

Theres no lack of income or revenue in this country its the distribution and investment that need adjusting.

I wont pursue an argument on yet another topic - I hope :)

Washington State's minimum wage is currently $7.35/hr...
It will be increased to $7.63/hr on Jan 1,2006.

I believe we're the highest in the country.

[post="29396"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

What will they ever do with that .28 cents and hour ? Lets see, thats a whole 11.2 bucks a week, or 44.8 gross buckerunies a month, so say maybe 30-32 smackers per month, new apartment maybe ?

Opp's Im doing it arent I . Sorry :rolleyes:

Thats more reasonable than here but still scary. Not that many jobs really pay minimum in reality, stores, gas stations, fast foods, ect. Some may start there but move up quickly to a higher level of poverty.

OK Im out of here, this is a more radical topic for me than the other ones.

What will they ever do with that .28 cents and hour ? Lets see, thats a whole 11.2 bucks a week, or 44.8 gross buckerunies a month, so say maybe 30-32 smackers per month, new apartment maybe ?

Opp's Im doing it arent I . Sorry  :rolleyes:

[post="29404"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

Well, it will guarantee everyone who's on minimum wage some type of cost-of-living increase even if their employers weren't going to be that generous.

Also, the benefits of consistently raising minimum wage are better appreciated when viewed over the long term.

No matter what, the lowest someone will take home (that is, after taxes) on a full-time job in Washington will be $1k ($15,870 @ 80%: $12,696). Considering you don't need a car if you live in Seattle, $1k a month will support rent and groceries. Several respectable companies here also provide a mass-transit pass or subsidy for their employees.

It's not middle class (not even close in Seattle where the average home is over $300k)... but it provides a means for survival. A lot of people get 2nd jobs when they're at the min-wage level, which helps to raise their standard of living (if they have time to have a life.) Plus, most people get room-mates to split costs.

It's a living. It can be rough... but it is survivable. (Once again, that's saying a lot considering how expensive it is to live in Seattle. Those who live in cheaper parts of Washington fair even better.)

I wish other parts of the country would increase their min-wage to our levels. It does seem to make a difference.

Damn.... I need to move the hell out of Pa. Minimum wage is somewhere around $5. Probably the national level of $5.15. But, damn. My parents each make about $8 or $9 and hour... Damn... Damn... huh. :huh:

British Columbia's minimum wage is the highest in Canada....$8.00 per hour. I hear they are trying to increase it to $8.50 per hour.

Edited October 16, 200519 yr by CadillacCTS

Wow.. when I was working, minimum was $4.85/hour. As a matter of fact, it took a jump while I was at my job, and people who started working after me were making more than I was! I quickly argued that.

$5.50 here in Iowa. I was lucky I got a job in high school where I did, because even though I started at 5.50, within a couple months I was up to 6.00, and by my senior year in High School I was making $8.00. The last couple summers I've worked there I was making $8.50/hour and putting in close to 60 hour weeks.

Minimum wage laws are the most racist on the books today.

Minimum wage laws are the most racist on the books today.

[post="29966"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

Please elaborate on how minimum wage laws are directly racist...

Please elaborate on how minimum wage laws are directly racist...

[post="29983"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

Because obviously the only people that take min. wage jobs live in hoods or ghettos and are either black, asian, or hispanic. GET REAL! That's stereotyping if I ever have heard it...

Furthermore, I find it more detestable that this country chooses to dictate minimum wage rather than giving incentives to move further up or be entrepreneurial. Let's face it... America wasn't built or made successful on the back of min. wage.

In my experience, those who are older than high school or college age generally make significantly more that 5.15/hour. In my area (which is one of the lowest costs of living in the country) fast food joints hire to start at 7-9/hour. So, with education and hard work you can obviously make much more than that.

When did someone in high school (have to have a car?) have to have 15/hour to survive? If I am not mistaken, driving is optional as there is bus transit and going out with friends during school shouldn't cost that much. Living with parents now requires rent??? Where does all of this entitlement talk come from?

Because obviously the only people that take min. wage jobs live in hoods or ghettos and are either black, asian, or hispanic.  GET REAL!  That's stereotyping if I ever have heard it...

Furthermore, I find it more detestable that this country chooses to dictate minimum wage rather than giving incentives to move further up or be entrepreneurial.  Let's face it... America wasn't built or made successful on the back of min. wage.

In my experience, those who are older than high school or college age generally make significantly more that 5.15/hour.  In my area (which is one of the lowest costs of living in the country) fast food joints hire to start at 7-9/hour.  So, with education and hard work you can obviously make much more than that.

When did someone in high school (have to have a car?) have to have 15/hour to survive?  If I am not mistaken, driving is optional as there is bus transit and going out with friends during school shouldn't cost that much.  Living with parents now requires rent???  Where does all of this entitlement talk come from?

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Ummmmm.... I worked a minimum wage job. I'm 100% white, and was living in a town which is literally 98% white.

Minimum wage is NOT just in the ghettos. It's almost every job a high schooler can get.

In Ontario it is $6.85/hr.

Ummmmm.... I worked a minimum wage job. I'm 100% white, and was living in a town which is literally 98% white.

Minimum wage is NOT just in the ghettos. It's almost every job a high schooler can get.

In Ontario it is $6.85/hr.

[post="30088"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

I understand what you are saying, I am white too and my first job was min. wage. My comment was directed at the person saying that "Minimum wage is racist." I agree... it's not!

I really should have quoted them instead of you SS...

I left my copy of Free to Choose at home, but here's an editorial quoting Friedman: "Moreover, the minimum wage is not an equal opportunity destroyer. Teens in general suffer more from this law than do adults. Each succeeding increase in the minimum wage has negatively impacted teenage unemployment rates. Just as the minimum wage attacks the young more than the old, it also harms blacks more than whites. Observed Milton Friedman more than three decades ago: 'Of all the laws on the statute books of this country, I believe the minimum wage law probably does the Negroes the most harm.' Each increase in the minimum wage has been followed by an immediate widening of the unemployment rate gap between black and white teens. Prior to the 1949 increase the two rates were virtually identical; immediately a gap was created. Every subsequent increase led to a dramatic increase in non-white unemployment while the white level stayed relatively stable. "

Edited October 17, 200519 yr by CSpec

Wait, I thought all black people sold drugs to make money. Settle down, its a joke, making fun of a stereotype, blah blah blah. I'm happy to say that I have never worked for minimum wage, I've never gotten really far above it, but never worked at it. I make $6/hour right now, but that is less than half of my income, since my tips and comissions work out to be about $8-10/hour. I've been lobbying for a raise, it just seems wrong that in a two week period anywhere from $1000 to $2000 will pass through my hands, yet my paycheck from that same period will be $350-$400. No wonder I steal from the company any chance I get.

The minimum wage here in Ontario is something like $7.50/hour. Bear in mind, that's Canadian money. After EI, I take home about $7.65/hour. I see no reason to increase the minimum wage. Youths have no debt, and are already the biggest spenders out there... I don't think giving them more money is going to help the economy signifigantly. As for adults working at minimum wage, well, I would say that there should be an adult minimum wage that is higher, that you get once you turn 21 or whatever. However, if you're over 30 and still working for $7.50/hour, I really don't have any pity for you.