Treasure valley Real Estate will not reset (Boise: high school, college)

[nm9stheham]

Originally Posted by alliance

It’s been proven that raising minimum wage dramatically only serves to increase the cost of living across the board. And a little bit of common sense thinking is really all you need to realize why. The businesses that pay wages don’t have unlimited supply of cash sitting in bank accounts (stop listening to Bernie) that they can easily spend on a 50+% increase in wages to employees, especially small businesses that rely on unskilled employees. So you end up with hours being cut, jobs being cut (a lot of places instantly had 5 people doing the work of 8, and with technology that makes things more efficient it actually is a very easy transition), or (more often) increased costs of goods and services. All this does is create forced inflation. The money has to come from somewhere. Strange concept, I know...

The people getting the raises, at best, break even with the increase in wages compared to the subsequent increase in cost of living. Their buying power plummeted. Literally every aspect of life is impacted, and gets more expensive. Every. Single. Thing. The people who really get screwed are every one else. Especially those who already make $15-20. They won’t be getting raises anytime soon (that money is going to the those who had the voted-in raises), and their cost living went up. Sucks to be them, eh?

So yes, if you want to make the cost of living to go up even further, by all means raise minimum wage to $15. That should help those who are already struggling...

Personally, I could afford to pay 20-50% more when I go out to restaurants, as an example. A lot of people can. But I know I eat out a lot less now after things skyrocketed compared to before. I want to support local small business as much as possible, but there gets to be a breaking point where it just doesn’t make sense anymore with how expensive things have gotten, especially knowing the reason behind it. And seeing a bunch of fees added onto charges when eating out that are specifically for the wage hike annoy the hell out of me. A lot of places in SF now add on 3-5% to the bill, as a line item next to the tax line, labeled specifically as a wage mandate fee. And that’s ON TOP OF the massive increases across the board on every item on the menu. Do we really want that in Idaho...? Because I guarantee you, that will be coming.

I ran a business in SF before and after the min wage hike to $15. It didn’t impact me or my people much, since i only had a relatively small number of people at min wage, as I had a wide range in wages and job types, and most were in the $20+ area. To balance the budget I had to do all of the above scenarios, but most of the added cost of doing business just got passed onto the customers. I made the voters pay for this policy as opposed to punish the employees by cutting hours or staffing. I can’t imagine having to balance the budget where a majority of my employees had these raises and the wage line in my budget went up literally 50%. I don’t envy that situation and the decisions they had to make, just to stay in business. Keep in mind, most small businesses aren’t out to get their employees. Don’t listen to politicians. We want to pay as much as we can. But as I said before, the money has to come from somewhere. The budget has to be balanced.

In the end, as I said before, everything in a very expensive city instantly (literally overnight) got even more stupidly expensive. Before, it was very difficult to get by on MW (but possible, believe it or not), but overnight it became an impossibility, as a direct result of MW, even with a 50% raise.

I now live in Idaho. I saw what this has done first hand. I experienced it. I paid for it. I know exactly what it means. So please believe me when I say, $15 minimum wage does nothing but hurt those it aims to help. I can go into further detail if you’d like, because I could talk about this all day long, but the reality is, a min wage hike is literally the exact opposite thing to be done if the goal is to help people who are struggling.

Everyone... listen to the man here....there WILL be many costs to this.

[MaltCueOur]

All I got from this is yes, if you're working class you can't afford to buy a house or live the 'high life' in Boise. That applies to 50 other metro areas.

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by FIGHTONSC

While I generally agree with most of your posts, I cannot wrap my head around this nonsensical notion that raising the minimum wage to $15.00 hr. will cure anything at all!

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkel...h=1725090ce4a7

In fact, in cities like Seattle where it has been tried and studied for years now, the results have been quite pronounced and disastrous. It’s actually reduced the workforce by 9%, closed many small businesses and increased automated services such as self checkout and kiosk ordering stations for fast food restaurants.

https://www.nationalreview.com/corne...um-wage-to-15/

https://citizentruth.org/unintended-...-wage-workers/


In other words, it has sunk a lot more boats than it raised!

Maybe so.
I think that a minimum raise increase that's universal- going to all federal jobs that pay minimum wage- would have a much different effect on the economy than the piecemeal raises individual states have given.

A state's money has to come mostly from within the state when it comes in, and when it goes out, it stays mostly within the state.
Federal money spreads out to all 50 states at once, and while most of it will stay within the individual states, more of it moves around the nation than state money does.

In our mobile society, that could make a huge difference in the impact of an increase to $15. It would be seen very fast here in Idaho; we are an attractive state now that folks want to move to, but our wages are low, and that makes moving worrisome. Other states with low wages make moving here more difficult in the newcomers aren't able to save up a stash to tide them over until they find work when they arrive.

But if all the working people here would suddenly get a boost in their income from the federal increase, they become better able to pay modest tax increases or other government needs. And if our newcomers come with more money to spend here and begin more money that will stay here, that will also float a lot of our boats.

Sure- it's all a risk. I could be as wrong as can be in my thinking.
But the disparity between wages and the cost of living is so great now I believe it's an even greater risk to both our economy and our social stability as a nation.

Right now, less than 1% of our people control over 90% of our nation's wealth, and all that money has pooled at the top of our economy. That 1% grows wealthier by the second now, while the other 90% struggles harder and harder to just get by leading modest lives.

An able-bodied workman who must work a full-time job and 2 part-time jobs just to keep his family sheltered and fed is a situation that cannot be tolerated for very long before change is demanded.

A $15 raise would force a lot more of that money that's pooled at the very top to go downward and begin circulating outward, to all those who are struggling. And for all those who are only getting by, the raise could be a step upward to real financial stability in their future.

It would strain the nation, with no doubt. The shock would be great. But the results would make the change happen fast, and the benefits could arrive suddenly.

I think the gamble is worth the payoff. But I can understand a different opinion, because any great change can be fearful.

I also think we all have gotten far too accustomed to hard times. I have grown children who were born into the hard times I went through, and hard times is all they have ever faced as young adults in their working lives.
I am more optimistic than my kids are about the future of the U.S.A., but I grew up seeing my parents struggle, rise, succeed, prosper, and grow old in a good life that was hard won by their labor.

I worked as hard all my working yet ars, by my struggle was never as successful, even though I was better educated and prepared than my parents were, and my success was lesser than theirs, even though they shared a fair part of it with me. Now, as I'm approaching old age, I'm also less secure than they were.

I have been less able to share my own prosperity with my children, because there was less of it to share. And they will be able to share even less of theirs with their own kids when it is their turn.

This needs to change. My story is the most typical of all throughout the country these days, and it's brought a cynical disbelief that our nation is any good any more. That we have lost our abilities to triumph and lead be the best any longer. That somehow, we have lost the stuff that made America so great for so long.

I do not believe that is true. All we need, I believe, is to take a new path, stick with it in unity for long enough to make it work, and we can hike our way back to the heights once again.

No hike is easy or safe. But if a rough hike shakes the mud that binds us down from off our feet, we all could lead happier and better lives.

I'm not going to be around when the full level of prosperity is reached- I'm 76, but I sure would like to see it begin. It could be my generations greatest gift to our kids. It would also be grand to see my beloved state and country flower and flourish again, too.

[FutureNorthender]

BanjoMike, great post as always! I’m not able to give you any more reputation points, but you don’t need them. I think a living wage for all benefits everybody, even employers, who will be able to attract loyal, competent employees.

[Faithfullizhe]

First, $15 an hour is crap. Folks need at least $25 an hour to have a decent wage. If you do this then you have Sydney, Australia. Where everything is uber expensive.

A sandwhich maker there can earn $35 an hour. Rent in Australia is by the week and it is thousands. All those 35 and under own nothing.

I disagree that we are so accustomed to hard times. I say America doesn't even know what hard times are. How many of you have callouses on your hands from working? Just look at folks, What do you see? Do you see folks emaciated and over worked?

You say we must have unity? take a new path? You can not share your prosperity? Your little fairy tale ending is just that. It is only in the movies. This is the real world and it has been and always will be a brutal struggle. We are heading back into the LAw of the Jungle not a fairy tale novel.

Do you really think the great reset means anything more for you and your children? It means even less. We will have a greater divide now more than ever between the rich and poor. You can sit there all you want and wish and believe this or that. The truth is brutal reality.

[MaltCueOur]

Ok, you 'living wage' people are living in fantasy land. Nobody is going to pay a sandwich maker $35/hour. That's already borderline rate for a junior web programmer who had to bust their a$$ learning their maths to get there. So somebody else who flunked math in school, becomes a Subway sandwich maker deserves the same amount?

What I find fascinating is why don't you 'fairness' people form your own business collective that is zero-profit but pay your workers a 'living wage'? Why force this ideology on everyone else who actually desires a profit?

[Syringaloid]

Regardless, Idaho still needs to raise the minimum wage.

[MaltCueOur]

Again, the studies show raising the min wage leads to less jobs for working class folks. The real solution is leveling up skills so that takes min wage out of the equation altogether.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

I think it is a good idea to do small adjustments to minimum wage, often. It's not such a great plan to raise minimum wage by $8 or $10 all at once.


However, I've got to say, I don't think I've even known anyone who is working for minimum wage. Maybe I worked for minimum wage when I used to babysit but I don't think even babysitters are working for minimum wage any more. So it seems a lot of argument about nothing that applies to the real world.

[diceyhot]

Large minimum wage hikes are a small business and jobs killer. Covid lockdowns were/are are small business and jobs killer. Seems to be a pattern. Exciting times ahead.