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In a 6 year span, yes, it's ~$7/hr. The average employee currently working at a, say again, lube shop, will not be working there in 5 years. He'll likely have moved onto bigger and better things. He was never expected to get yearly raises to eventually reach $15/hr by working there. (By the way, yearly raises typically range from 2.5-5% of one's salary. 5% of $10/hr is $0.50.
It's the kid coming out of high school that will be starting at a whooping $15/hr, at the added expense of the business owner. Again, how is this owner going to afford that added $75k payroll expense, for a business that rakes in a profit of maybe $80k/year?
As a poster above mentioned, too, a statewide increase of this amount is insane. In South Florida, sure, earning $15/hr isn't much. In Perry, FL, $15/hr is quite a handsome wage for someone working in fast food.
Minimum wage didn't start to help the kid fresh out of high school. That's not why it exists. It was created to provide a LIVING WAGE for low-rank labor. It actually did provide a living wage, when it was first implemented. It didn't make anyone wealthy, but it provided subsistence. Inflation has increased since then, and so has minimum wage. Except in some states, because the FEDERAL minimum wage hasn't changed in over 10 years - even though inflation has gone up since then.
Here's the history of Florida's minimum wage, going back only to 2000:
2000-2004 $5.15/hour (same as federal at the time)
2005 $6.15/hour
2006 $6.40/hour
2007 $6.67/hour
2008 $6.79/hour
2009 $7.21/hour
2009 (later in the year) - 2011 $7.25/hour (same as federal at the time)
2011 (later in the year) $7.31/hour
2012 $7.67/hour
2013 $7.79/hour
2014 $7.93/hour
2015 - 2016 $8.05/hour
2017 $8.10/hour
2018 $8.25/hour
2019 $8.46/hour
2020 $8.56/hour
Meanwhile, the cost of living has gone up significantly higher in ALL parts of the state. A loaf of bread is more. Rents are more. Utilities are more. Cable is more. Cell phones cost more (even the crappy ones). Landline isn't even available in some parts of the state, and the only reliable method of communication is either cable internet wifi or cellular service - which costs MUCH more than POTS landline phone service. Groceries are more, cars cost more, health care costs more (unless you are super-poverty-stricken and qualify for Medicaid, OR low-income and qualify for ACA subsidies - everyone else pays more for health CARE - not just insurance, whether they can afford it or not).
The studies show that in the state of Florida, $10.00 is NOT a living wage. It's not even a living wage in the rural areas. It's mostly not a living wage, because most $10/hour jobs are NOT full time, and do NOT come with health insurance. So people earning $10/hour are typically only taking home around $200/week, and have to spend some of that on health insurance - or high cost health expenses if they can't afford insurance.
Try living on $800/month, supporting your stay-home wife and child (since you can't afford daycare while mom works for a living), paying rent, utilities, food, and transportation to and from work.
You can't do it. It's not possible. People who have TWO part time jobs are spending an average of 60 hours total, between the time they leave the house til the time they return for the night, for around $320/week after taxes. That nets to around $5.50/hour. And with that $320/week they still have to pay for all those expenses, at $1300/month, with a wife and child who STILL can't afford daycare so she is a stay at home mom.
Why would ANYONE worth hiring, want to live in Florida, when they can work in another state for more? There are lots of entry-level jobs in Florida. All paying that minimum wage, none of which are full time, and most of which come with any benefits of any kind, and they aren't even entitled to a break during their shift.
Furthermore, when you work a part time job in retail, you must have open availability. If the boss schedules you to work on Wednesday between 2-6 next week, you have to tell you second job that you need that day off. Most people CANNOT work two part-time jobs, at least in retail, for that reason. Both employers deserve an employee who can work when the employer schedules them. It's a conflict of scheduling otherwise.
The hardest working people in this state are earning the lowest wages in this state. Personally I feel it should be reversed. The CEOs should be on profit-sharing and commissions ONLY - while their employees should be enjoying vacations in the Carribean.
You get paid what the market deems your work to be worth. It doesn't matter if you "work hard." If you're easily replaceable, and aren't producing work that garners high profits/revenue, your wages are not going to be high. Why would they?
Should a trench digger be paid more than the engineer who studied weight loads and fluid mechanics , because he is "working harder?" No. His work is not worth nearly as much, and is easily dispensable.
That is how economy works. If one doesn't like one's pay, move onto something else.
And quite frankly, what adult raising a family is working minimum wage? You'd have to have really messed up somewhere down the line to be there, as even the lowest-paying jobs offer annual raises, and a 25 year old young parent who has been working since 18 should NOT be still at starting salary level. Unless they keep getting fired and jumping from one job to another.
Minimum wage, as it is now (not when it was implemented -- times were different) is meant for, yes, those entering the workforce, or those studying in high school or college. No able-bodied full-grown adult with kids should be in a position where they are 30 years old and working at minimum wage, unless they spent the last 12 years of their lives in prison, and are somehow just starting adulthood.
But yeah, it's always easier to point the finger at the evil CEO. You know, most small business owners are FAR from being wealthy, right? And they've worked their way up through life to attain that position. It wasn't handed to them for free.
But hey, you're right -- why would anyone worth hiring want to live in Florida? Let them move elsewhere, where life and wages are so much better. I'm all for it.
Asking again: How will small business owners afford this? That's a $15,000/yr added expense, per employee. For a small business, that is A LOT.
But what's another Walmart to run out Linda's corner store, right?
Minimum wage didn't start to help the kid fresh out of high school. That's not why it exists. It was created to provide a LIVING WAGE for low-rank labor. It actually did provide a living wage, when it was first implemented. It didn't make anyone wealthy, but it provided subsistence. Inflation has increased since then, and so has minimum wage. Except in some states, because the FEDERAL minimum wage hasn't changed in over 10 years - even though inflation has gone up since then.
Here's the history of Florida's minimum wage, going back only to 2000:
Minimum wage was not for a living wage.
It was a starter income for those who had no skill and were just entering the job market. They had to work hard, learn skills, etc., to earn a livable wage. I Started to work when minimum wage as $1.00 hr.
It was a starter income for those who had no skill and were just entering the job market. They had to work hard, learn skills, etc., to earn a livable wage. I Started to work when minimum wage as $1.00 hr.
Business owners will never be able to afford an increase in the minimum wage. So let's just keep it where it is forever. That's really the rationale, isn't it?
Business owners will never be able to afford an increase in the minimum wage. So let's just keep it where it is forever. That's really the rationale, isn't it?
No. No one is advocating for this, anywhere.
But a nearly 100% increase in pay over the next 6 years, without factoring in location (SFL vs Perry, FL, for instance) makes no sense.
No. No one is advocating for this, anywhere.
But a nearly 100% increase in pay over the next 6 years, without factoring in location (SFL vs Perry, FL, for instance) makes no sense.
So Perry FL can always be Perry FL. That's part of the reason why....
So Perry FL can always be Perry FL. That's part of the reason why....
Not really... It's the same reason why a salary for the same job in SF is going to pay more than in Central FL -- cost of everything is significantly higher in SF, and so wages get adjusted based on CoL.
Can't expect the same pay to work a job in rural North FL as you would in a huge metropolis such as Miami. There are pros and cons to living in the big city. Pros are higher wages, and the amenities that come with big city life. Cons are higher costs of everything, which include business operations, due to higher expected wages, among other things.
McDonalds installed the automated cashiers in Seattle stores when the minimum wage was hiked there. And several businesses moved out of that city.
I didn’t support the $15 minimum wage movement here in Seattle, but the majority of the people did. As stated already, it affected the small business owners the most, leading to many either shutting down or moving. A small example, several Subway sandwich shops, which were independently owned franchises, closed their doors.
This wasn’t only Subway, but numerous other businesses that weren’t turning huge profits from the get-go. Btw, Subway sandwiches suck anyway.... IMHO.
As for the larger employers, they were able to absorb the cost of doing business... With some changes like reducing the numbers of employees AND automizing many other functions, like removing most of their cashiers, by adding mainly Kiosks for ordering and having, most of the time, self check-out stands.
As for the theft loses, by accident or by purpose, at the self check outs, I was told by the one employee watching 12-13 of the check-outs was that the managers said that the theft losses were still far cheaper than having employees doing the work.
These automated functions, IMHO, were coming anyway, but many of these employees with having their hours reduced are now forced to work or spend more time at their “second” job. Many of these employees are now complaining that their lives were not benefited with the pay increases, as they first thought since many lost some or a very noticeable amount of social benefits they were once receiving before their pay was increased to $15 a hour.
Personally, I’m glad that many did end up losing some of the social welfare benefits since I believe that this will motive many to better themselves now, which will lead them into better employment positions in the very near future... Seriously, working at McDonalds or at Taco Bell was NEVER meant to be a career choice, unless you moved up into the management or key logistics operations positions, but for many, they were “comfortable” doing the bare minimum at work or basically having very little to no real responsibilities for their time working... Basically come in do their time and leave, while not giving it a second thought.
If that’s your goal in life, fine, but they need to accept that their overall pay reflex that. Also, a lot of people with “issues” like their choices in using drugs, poor work habits or individuals convicted of a felony and have done time in prison... Employers will now be less likely to hire these individuals with “issues“ since now there will be competition for the fewer positions, so they now can be a little more picky on who they hire... A local Wendy’s use to hire a lot of individuals who were released from prison to fill most of their entry level positions, but I’ve noticed over a period of time, they’re gone and have been replaced with people who do not appear that done any prison time or appear to look like they’re on meth.
The “going down the rabbit hole” part of this $15 a hour movement is that it has mutated into the $20 a hour movement and even in some cities, a $25 a hour movement.
The reason why I’m chiming in on this issue in Florida is that I’m thinking of moving to Florida if “things” get more serious with my friend, who now lives in the Tampa area.
Letting the market set the wages failed. Minimum wage earners ended up on welfare and supported by the taxpayers. Employers got away with shorting employees to the point where it's the norm while not accepting any responsibility of the burden to the state.
Political grandstanding and posturing convinced so many that minimum wage earners dont deserve the basic necessities in life while trying to scrap away their welfare at every opportunity.
If you are a business owner and cant afford to pay your staff a living wage you are a failing business and will be shut down soon anyway. This new wage law is a response to these failings by firms and government .
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