Critics Mad at Congress Over Minimum Wage Inaction

Fox ^ | October 22, 2002 | AP

[wallcrawlr]

WASHINGTON

[Tuco-bad]

President Bush had signaled that he might accept a small increase, but only if states were allowed to opt out.

Bush, to be against signifcantly raising the minimum wage (without an opt out) must be one mean-spirited person.

[discostu]

Or smart enough to know that deliberately adding inflation to an already weak economy is tantamount to treason.

[sjmiller]

I read (I wish I could remember the source) that a lot of union contracts are $X above minimum wage.

[Tuco-bad]

Or smart enough to know that deliberately adding inflation to an already weak economy is tantamount to treason.

Yeah - tell that to your boss the next time he offers you a raise.

[discostu]

Ooh way to miss the point Tuco-bad-at-math.

A minimum wage hike raises the cost of ALL good sold. Thus raising the cost of living. When my boss gives me a raise it's on an individual basis and AFTER having looked at the books to make sure the business can afford it. I don't see any congressmen checking the national books to make sure every business in the country can afford to give all of their employees raises.

[Phantom Lord]

Diane Cunningham, a home health care worker in Chicago, is thankful she didn't have to rely on Congress to raise the minimum wage, or even to consider the idea. She'd still be waiting.

Clearly Ms. Cunningham didn't do anything to improve her skill set or job performace to merit and increase in pay.

"They don't want to do what they need to [do] to help poor people,'' said Cunningham, 41, who got a raise after a living wage ordinance passed in Chicago.

And thanks to the living wage ordinance she doesn't need to improve her skill set. And soon we will hear from her again that she is waiting on Chicago for another mandated wage increase and she will whine that they are not acting fast enough. And that it is the republicans fault, even though they are non-existant in Chicago.

[Phantom Lord]

I read (I wish I could remember the source) that a lot of union contracts are $X above minimum wage

Many union contracts mandate pay to be a multiple of minimum wage. Such as 3X minimum wage.

[Phantom Lord]

Or smart enough to know that deliberately adding inflation to an already weak economy is tantamount to treason.

Yeah - tell that to your boss the next time he offers you a raise.

Big big difference between an employer raising the pay of deserving employees and the Imperial Federal Government mandating it across the board.

[ffrancone]

IN 14 DAYS, THEY'LL BE VOTING DEMOCRAT

WHAT ARE YOU DOING TODAY TO HELP TAKE BACK THE SENATE?

TakeBackCongress.org

A resource for conservatives who want a Republican majority in the Senate

[Bitman]

"It's not fair to people that's working."

Gotta love the grammer...

Ifin she wer learned gooder she might has got a more better job. < /sarcasm>

[Cicero]

Daschle could have forced this issue if he had wanted to. He could have combined it with a small tax cut, which would also appeal to the voters. You have to wonder why he hasn't, because it would have been politically popular.

He seems to be so set on obstruction that he can't think any other way.

[Hank Rearden]

In WA state, the mandated minimum is currently $6.90, going to slightly over $7.00 next January. I wish we had to pay "only" the Fed minimum.

Some of our employees aren't worth that much; their burdened cost to the company is over $8.00/hour after the tax parasites add on their confiscation.

So guess who will be let go first? Yep, the ones who aren't worth minimum wage. If I could pay them $5.50-6.00 they'd probably keep their jobs.

And no, these aren't "family" people living the leftist "struggle" - they're teenagers, with no dependents or even their own housing to support, who don't have a good work ethic. They see a paycheck as some kind of "right" they're entitled to, even when they're not producing enough revenue to cover their paychecks much less turn a profit for the company.

Minimum Wage is just another stupid idea from Big Stupid Government (Republicans are just as responsible). People who aren't worth the minimum will be jobless - how is that a good system?

[jimkress]

Since the Left has never found a way to 'justify' its selection of a specific dollar amount for the minimum wage, I propose that we make it $200/ hour.

After all, journeymen lawyers make $200/ hour. Aren't the working people of America entitled to the same wage as the lawyers?

[jimkress]

Bump!

[Bitman]

I propose that we make it $200/ hour

Why not $1,589,431.93 per hour. Then a loaf of bread would only cost a few hundred thousand dollars.

[Paradox]

Tuco, you are an embarrassingly bad troll, why do you even bother?

[Tuco-bad]

A minimum wage hike raises the cost of ALL good sold. Thus raising the cost of living. When my boss gives me a raise it's on an individual basis and AFTER having looked at the books to make sure the business can afford it. I don't see any congressmen checking the national books to make sure every business in the country can afford to give all of their employees raises.

The reason that companies are getting away with paying low and minimum wages, is the importing of low-priced immigrant workers (i.e., H-1B workers, etc.).

Of course that enabled the 9/11 terrorists to enter and reenter the U.S. so easily.

[philetus]

Is there any chance of that, at this time?

[Weimdog]

"Cunningham was making just 15 cents more than the minimum wage and could hardly make ends meet. Chicago's living-wage ordinance, which took effect in 1999, won her a raise to $7.60 an hour plus back pay. That money helped her buy a home."

How on earth do you go from "hardly making ends meet" to buying a home on $7.60/hr.?