New York Plans $15 Minimum Wage for Fast Food Workers • Hacker News Board

Re: New York Plans $15 Minimum Wage for Fast Food Workers

#11

Post by jghn » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 7:40 PM UTC

vparikh wrote: post #9

philiphodgen wrote: post #3

This will only accelerate the trend to automating away these jobs. E.g., serve your own soda -- it is cheaper than having a human make the drink for you. When humans are more expensive than machines, they are replaced.

I seriously think this will not happen. People like to interact with people when they are conducting transactions. A classic example is the bank teller. For all intensive purposes, you average ATM machine can handle just about 95% of your bank needs. You don't see any less tellers then you did before. Remember how people revolted when banks tried to charge you a fee if you went to see a teller instead of using an ATM…

I've seen a teller exactly once in the last 17 years and that one was only because I had to. I'd prefer the place which is fully automated

Re: New York Plans $15 Minimum Wage for Fast Food Workers

#12

Post by andrewmcwatters » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 8:24 PM UTC

peterwwillis wrote: post #10

andrewmcwatters wrote: post #8

Frankly, I want a good, cheap burger, and if the way to obtaining that is to automate jobs, bring it on. I remember when if you wanted a cheap burger, you went to Micky D's and if you wanted a bit more quality you could shell out a buck or two more somewhere else like Burger King. But the field has changed and now with a greater number of Five Guys and In-and-Outs, it seems like everyone wants to jump on the quality…

I think you're exaggerating the scope of the changes in the fast food industry. There are very few Five Guys and In-n-Out locations compared to the big fast food chains, whose prices remain very competitive, and whose food remains pretty crappy. Don't worry; you can still buy really cheap, unhealthy food all over the nation.

Perhaps it's localized, or I am just exaggerating. But it's not uncommon for a meal at McDonalds in Arizona to be comparable to one at In-n-Out. Other local fast food chains also now mimic the containers or lack thereof of the aforementioned burger joints.

Re: New York Plans $15 Minimum Wage for Fast Food Workers

#13

Post by overpaidgoogler » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 11:51 PM UTC

jhugg wrote: post #6

philiphodgen wrote: post #3

This will only accelerate the trend to automating away these jobs. E.g., serve your own soda -- it is cheaper than having a human make the drink for you. When humans are more expensive than machines, they are replaced.

Seems to me that robot stuff is getting cheaper faster than wages are going up. If a robot can do the job, then another $6 an hour probably isn’t all that different. Might as well pay people a living wage for hard work in the meantime.

You can't have it both ways. "in the meantime" there will also be cases where $6 an hour would have made the difference between having a job and not having one.