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Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

annehelen.substack.com

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Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#591

Post by parineum »

lucian1900 wrote: post #513
parineum wrote: post #438

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Would a communist United States not trade with China?

Currently, US capitalists exploit workers both in the US and in poorer countries, with the later being super-exploited. Under this arrangement, the vast majority of the value created by both groups of workers is captured by a handful of capitalists. A socialist US would cease exploiting other countries (including China) and instead pursue mutually beneficial trade (much like China does). This would likely include som…

US trade with China is currently mutually beneficial. That's why China participates.

Give me more detail on what that means. If the US Communist party took over absolute leadership of the US tomorrow, what differences would there be in the US China trade agreement.

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#592

Post by uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh »

The wage issue is generally portrayed in a binary light, with "liveable vs unliveable", but a min wage hike will invariably cause middle earner increases (boss, the frycook makes 25, I might go do that and just write code in my free time), raising the floor, and then were back where we started except everythin is N percent more expensive. The real crooks in medicine must have a hoot everytime they see McDonalds take the fall for the debased living conditions of the photogenically appaling.

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#593

Post by Ericson2314 »

lolinder wrote: post #578
pessimizer wrote: post #493

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't want to create a class of people who get paid badly because their jobs are terrible (and also low-skilled.) The only reason you would want a lower minimum wage for young people is because young people are stupid, and you want to put them into a job where they can learn i.e. low-skilled, but ramping up over time, like an apprenticeship. Paying people almost nothing to work a horrible job because you can get…

You keep using the word class, but I don't think it's applicable here. If everyone in the country is subjected to a lower minimum wage while a teenager, there is no disadvantaged "class".

Not sure why this getting down-voted. There are issues, like to what extent having teenagers work is useful or harmful to society in the first place, but a universal things everyone enters and leaves isn't a class in the segregated and hereditary sense.

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#594

Post by ZephyrBlu »

maybelsyrup wrote: post #256
jschveibinz wrote: post #2

This article unfortunately doesn't address the business side of the problem. Fast food restaurants, or place like "Dale's" mentioned in the article, make very little profit. It is most likely below 10%. Here is an estimate: https://www.restaurant365.com/blog/what-is-the-average-profi... . A 10% profit is very modest. That's not the story of the "fat cats getting rich on the back of the workers" that the article is al…

> This article unfortunately doesn't address the business side of the problem. Good! I've been hearing about "the business side of the problem" my entire life -- lectured sternly about it, in many cases. All while few of the Adults and Experts - people with Real Power, in other words - dare even mention some of the topics laid out in the link. > I'm just saying that both sides of the equation need to be examined, i.e…

> There is no "plight of the business". There's a business that's making money, losing it, or breaking even. The people working there may feel the consequences, but a business cannot "suffer"

For a small business, the business and the owner can be practically one in the same. So in some cases I think that verbiage is pretty spot on.

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#595

Post by brutal_chaos_ »

zizee wrote: post #382

Honest question: why do discussions about minimum wage in the U.S. never propose having teenagers having a different minimum to adults? In australia we have a $12.50/hr minimum for 15 year olds. It climbs in increments until about $25/hr. This system allows teenagers to get a foot in the door for low-skilled jobs, and allows adults to get paid a livable wage. The result is that a lot of fast food jobs are performed b…

"Why make things more complicated? We've always had one minimum wage; don't change what ain't broke." Nevermind the numerous fallacies, this is a typical thought pattern for Americans.

Another bad habbit Americans have: they look only to their authority for answers (whomever that may be. e.g. the president, fox news, the church, etc). Go watch some Trump rallies to see this in action.

I'm beginning to believe our education system has left us lacking even basic critical thinking skills and thus we can not have two minimum wages.

Edit typo, and:

Not all Americans are this way, obviously, but enough are and they're in the right areas to cause problems. (wrt areas, see: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrymandering )

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#596

Post by whatever1 »

Coming from southern Europe, I have to say that we have been there 20 years ago and it looks ugly.

In Southern Europe, the family (and not the individual) is the smallest decision making unit and it is typical to have 3 generations of people living under the same roof, all of them supporting (and applying pressure to) each other in different ways.

Parents and grandparents are helping youth financially. Youth in Southern Europe is typically highly educated, however, the job opportunities for high-skilled labor are quite limited.

Naturally, there are two options for overqualified youth: leave the family and get an underpaid job that cannot help them anyway to break even, or keep relying exclusively on their family (with the attached daily complaining from their end).

Result: Youth unemployment rates > 50%, businessess that cannot find cheap labor and close, economy that stays stagnant for decades.

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#597

Post by bobthechef »

zizee wrote: post #382

Honest question: why do discussions about minimum wage in the U.S. never propose having teenagers having a different minimum to adults? In australia we have a $12.50/hr minimum for 15 year olds. It climbs in increments until about $25/hr. This system allows teenagers to get a foot in the door for low-skilled jobs, and allows adults to get paid a livable wage. The result is that a lot of fast food jobs are performed b…

If you create two wages, then adults might not be able to compete for those jobs even though they likely need them more than the teenagers do. So unless you introduce quotas (there's your slippery slope), I don't see this as a good thing. Even with quotas, you run into budget constraints.

There's also the fact that minimum wage cuts jobs. So if the budget allows for X hires at teenage wage and YNow without the minimum wage, you could at least give the adult a job at a lower wage than what you pay teenagers. It sucks, but if the choice is between no job and some job that pays below a fair wage, it seems the latter is preferable if you don't want to starve.

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#598

Post by adgjlsfhk1 »

rufus_foreman wrote: post #576
adgjlsfhk1 wrote: post #570

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So do you have a link to a reliable figure as to what 20th percentile rent is? "I'm sure you would agree with me if you knew a statistic that I'm not going to share with you" is hardly a convincing argument.

I'm not doing your homework. The original post said the average cost for a studio was $900. You claim that the 20th percentile cost is $1000. That doesn't make any sense whatsoever, so you go figure out what the real numbers are and then we can talk.

For some other random cities using the same methodology (1 bedroom) Wichita: 500 St Louis: 650 Columbus: 800 Pittsburgh: 850 Dallas/Fort Worth: 950 Nashville: 1000 Orlando: 1200 Sacramento: 1200

What methodology would you use to find this data if Appartments.com isn't reliable?

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#599

Post by lostcolony »

Ericson2314 wrote: post #593
lolinder wrote: post #578

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You keep using the word class, but I don't think it's applicable here. If everyone in the country is subjected to a lower minimum wage while a teenager, there is no disadvantaged "class".

Not sure why this getting down-voted. There are issues, like to what extent having teenagers work is useful or harmful to society in the first place, but a universal things everyone enters and leaves isn't a class in the segregated and hereditary sense.

Religion is a legally protected class; everyone is free to change their religion. Pregnancy is also a legally protected class, despite being one that half the population can enter and leave. Also, short term disabilities.

I don't find this argument compelling, unless you're also arguing that employers should be able to pay people less for their religion or because they get pregnant (or choose not to get pregnant) or because they contracted a disease or injury.

Re: Labor shortage or terrible jobs?

#600

Post by ZephyrBlu »

inetknght wrote: post #558
betwixthewires wrote: post #326

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know where you live, but you're the one that is out of touch. 2 tanks a week? 200 bucks a month for shit tier food? Ever heard of cooking? 1400 a month rent? I've spent time in Houston, on minimum wage, and in the past decade. It was alright. I even had the money to go out drinking every weekend, by Rice university at that. Usually when you hear arguments like this and you get down to brass tacks, you start t…

> 2 tanks a week? When I lived in Spring and commuted to the office at 610 North and I-45, it was 2 tanks a week for the 35 minute drive. That was 7 years ago. > 200 bucks a month for shit tier food? Ever heard of cooking? One week of food for one person: 2lb white rice, $1.5 1lb beans, $1.25 2lb ground meat, $10 1gal milk, $4 1lb sharp cheddar, $5 1 loaf bread, $3.5 total... $25. Times four weeks, you get $100. I ne…

$1400/mo for rent seems exorbitant, especially if you're working a minimum wage job.
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