Democratic 2016 Presidential Field

[PaleRider]

$10 is nothing, especially when you take into account the fact that 99% of customers are complete asshats, What do you think they should be paid?

While i can attest to the 10 dollars not being much and the asshats that some customers are, you work in an easily replaceable job. An entry level position that anyone with even marginal intelligence can do. Its not that demanding (intellectually speaking) to flip burgers, or fry food. I mean it youre 25, have a wife and kid to provide for and youre working at McDonalds flipping burgers, you need to re-evaluate your life. I know America's public education system leaves much to be desired but cmon now, its not so totally incompetent.

Now addressing the larger economic bit of this, we are witnessing a shift in the economy. Gone are the middle level manufacturing jobs that require basic training. Our schools are still geared toward turning out factory workers more or less. We need a more diversified and total education system here. That means more specialized high school programs (VB actually has a great "academy" system; i went to the Global Studies one and we have a Legal program, health science etc) to provide more direction, more attention to vocational programs to give teens the ability to begin learning the basic of specialized skills.

[soysauce]

I understand that McDonalds isn't exactly an academic job but I don't see any reason to cut their worker's pay. The company is making huge profits already so it hardly needs the extra money and I think that paying significantly less than $10 an hour would be exploiting the workers.

Anyway, if you believe that America is the greatest country in the world then shouldn't Americans be the best paid in the world? Shouldn't they have the best opportunities in the world? I understand that free and unrestricted trade is beneficial to the economy but left to it's own devices the market will chew up and spit out most Americans.

Regulations must be in place to protect the American people and what could be more basic than a minimum wage?

[Afrocentric]

Nobody is saying their shouldn't be a minimum wage, but it must be realistic; I think $7.15/hour is a reasonable number.

[Amazeroth]

I understand that McDonalds isn't exactly an academic job but I don't see any reason to cut their worker's pay. The company is making huge profits already so it hardly needs the extra money and I think that paying significantly less than $10 an hour would be exploiting the workers.

I agree. McDonalds workers are underpaid in comparison to others, and they often win suits against McDonalds because of the bad workplace. However, instead of just treating it superficially via minimum wage (which goes for more than just McDonalds workers, and usually leads directly to layoffs or at least less hirings), you should try to enable a better job market for those who, right now, seem to have no other option than to work at McDonalds.

[soysauce]

I've considered working for them part time in the past since they're actually quite flexible on hours and they'll give you as much overtime as you want. The downside is that they pay minimum wage but there aren't many part time jobs going that would pay me much more to be honest.

[PaleRider]

I understand that McDonalds isn't exactly an academic job but I don't see any reason to cut their worker's pay. The company is making huge profits already so it hardly needs the extra money and I think that paying significantly less than $10 an hour would be exploiting the workers.

Anyway, if you believe that America is the greatest country in the world then shouldn't Americans be the best paid in the world? Shouldn't they have the best opportunities in the world? I understand that free and unrestricted trade is beneficial to the economy but left to it's own devices the market will chew up and spit out most Americans.

McDonald's, at least in VB actually pays pretty well for an entry level position. Most of my friends there make $8 or higher and i do support a minimum wage, but i dont support a FEDERAL minimum wage. I think each state here should determine the level of any minimum wage because the state level economies and differences are so huge. Virginia has totally different needs than Indiana and even close by states like Washington and Idaho are completely different. I prefer a state based approach to most regulation.

Regulations must be in place to protect the American people and what could be more basic than a minimum wage?

Unfortunately, at least in America, we have so much regulation that all the worthless dictats crowd out the value of the needed ones. The Federal Register is over 180,000 pages long! Now combine that with the various state and local laws and regulation and youre in a for a rude awakening. I mean the health care and social service code of the Register is over 85,000 pages long and the tax code is over 75,000 pages long! More regulation is hardly needed, especially with so much frivolous waste. This is why i am Republican. For all the Todd Akin's and Michelle Bachman's that make me shake my head, they are right that more regulation is hardly needed, and rarely if ever works. I mean we have railroad regulation stipulating that each train and even in service yards, a fireman or stoker be present! Even after we ditched coal powered engines!! Then the Interstate Commerce Commission (now abolished, in 1996!) held back mergers and had a vice like grip on rates and routes and even to this day, no passenger train can travel faster than 79 m/ph because back in ye olden day people felt it made trains unsafe. So i mean ya regulation is needed but when we have century old regulation that hasnt been removed i dont exactly trust the government to be on top of things.

[Afrocentric]

no passenger train can travel faster than 79 m/ph because back in ye olden day people felt it made trains unsafe

That's because our current rail infrastructure cannot sustain trains going over a certain speed limit. Maybe when we finally get HSR in this country, you'll be able to go 80 mph.

[PaleRider]

no passenger train can travel faster than 79 m/ph because back in ye olden day people felt it made trains unsafe

That's because our current rail infrastructure cannot sustain trains going over a certain speed limit. Maybe when we finally get HSR in this country, you'll be able to go 80 mph.

Well regardless of HSR we still have adequate safety measures to ensure regular passenger trains can go faster. This is a rule from the 1930's mind you! Also, the problem with rail in America generally is that we lack the population density to make it work, along with govt intrusion and subsidization of highly unprofitable routes and rates. I mean outside the DC-Boston East Coast area there, and maybe the San Diego, LA , and San Fran area in Cali, there really isnt need for HSR or even a rail system beyond a skeleton national system, and by skeleton i mean maybe some long routes linking like LA to Houston (so Californians can get out faster!) but have it like a direct line.

[EEL123]

I've considered working for them part time in the past since they're actually quite flexible on hours and they'll give you as much overtime as you want. The downside is that they pay minimum wage but there aren't many part time jobs going that would pay me much more to be honest.

Isn't that the trade-off? You can get high overtime and flexible conditions and get paid less, or you can go elsewhere and get more pay, but forgo the flexibility and overtime pay.

[soysauce]

I've considered working for them part time in the past since they're actually quite flexible on hours and they'll give you as much overtime as you want. The downside is that they pay minimum wage but there aren't many part time jobs going that would pay me much more to be honest.

Isn't that the trade-off? You can get high overtime and flexible conditions and get paid less, or you can go elsewhere and get more pay, but forgo the flexibility and overtime pay.

You're also trading away most of your employment rights if you work for them but that's pretty much the same with every low paid job, firings over really petty issues can and do occur.