Does he think we're greedy?

[jackfaire]

I make 10 cents over minimum wage in deference to my over decade of experience in customer service. No matter how many skills I learn no matter how much I know I am still considered "Unskilled Labor" as if working in a restaurant requires no skill.

My boss is a compassionate man who doesn't want to screw us out of hours and does everything he can to run the business and give us the hours we need.

My boss thinks minimum wage is ridiculous. Not the amount it is but that it exists. He feels for us to expect to be paid like "real jobs" is dumb.

The thing that drives me nuts is we do work a real job. We didn't create an industry that no one needed and then convince people to want it and then complain when people don't pay us what we would like.

Close down every business that pays their employees only minimum wage and the entire infrastructure of our country would fall apart.

Yet he told us that he believes employees wanting a living wage is killing businesses. Our company corporate wide is about to have a price increase and instead of acknowledging any of the other factors. It's all because workers the country over are trying desperately hard to bump our wages into the "I won't starve to death" range.

He just sees it as us hurting businesses. He can't see the fact that if we were all making a living wage our company wouldn't have to give us a steep discount, 65 percent, just to be able to eat there.

Or that it would especially in our area increase the amount of business we have exponentially. I constantly get people coming in that give me shit because I haven't eaten every single item on the menu. I want to tell them "Well I can't afford it since I make so little money but sure it's my bad for not spending what little money I make ensuring I can give you the best recommendation possible"

Part of the problem I feel is that people in the industry start at crap wages but then when they work their way up to management positions and are now making living wages they blame our low wages on "it's your own fault for working the jobs you do" instead of "maybe if we paid you actual wages you would only have to work here"

I saw co-workers getting praised for basically killing themselves.

"She worked so hard she put herself in the hospital" My reaction "that's fucked up something needs to change" the boss' reaction "that's dedication people"

"She works full time here and at another job!" My reaction "Woah when the hell does she sleep? No wonder she always seems cranky" the boss' reaction "Isn't that just amazing and admirable"

Don't stand there and tell me to my face that us killing ourselves is okay but the company having to ensure we don't die for them would kill the business.

[s_stabeler]

I'm personally of the opinion that if a business would legitimately go bankrupt if wages rose to the point workers didn't need a second job to survive, then the business is already bankrupt.

My personal; belief is that the MW should be at a level where someone working 40 hours per week doesn't need a second job to pay for necessities. (basically, someone on MW at present would need food stamps to be able to buy food if they worked full-time hours. That, to me, is unacceptable. Basic survival should not require someone to work multiple jobs)

[jackfaire]

My personal; belief is that the MW should be at a level where someone working 40 hours per week doesn't need a second job to pay for necessities.

The thing is that is actually why Minimum Wage was created in the first place. He at one point in his tirade said "It's not like this is rocket science" I keep thinking "If a rocket scientist was only being paid 15 an hour they would be woefully underpaid"

[MadMike]

But if he had to pay a living wage, he might not be able to afford that third summer home, or he might have to settle for an 80-foot yacht instead of a 100-foot one.

[protege]

But if he had to pay a living wage, he might not be able to afford that third summer home, or he might have to settle for an 80-foot yacht instead of a 100-foot one.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of business owners like that. They don't want to reward their employees who work their asses off. Instead, any profits go right into the owner's pocket, and excuses are made about how the company "had a bad year" and "can't afford" to give raises or bonuses. Then the owner can't understand when people leave...or just don't give a shit. Usually, when people do leave, you get to hear a tirade about how "nobody has company loyalty any more."

You know what? Fuck that. You want loyalty? You have to pay for it. Throw your employees a bone now and then. Without them, you wouldn't have that second home or that sports car.

[jackfaire]

You know what? Fuck that. You want loyalty? You have to pay for it. Throw your employees a bone now and then. Without them, you wouldn't have that second home or that sports car.

What pisses me off is that he's not even the owner. It's a franchise. He's just the general manager. If the states raised minimum wage it wouldn't affect his bottom line at all he would still get paid by the company all the same.

There was no reason for his whole "you shouldn't get fifteen an hour" speech. He was talking about how our prices are going to increase. He tried to blame it on minimum wage going up in other states.

I don't know if that's what the company is saying but it's clearly B.S. I have lived in a large area with multiple locations of a chain store. Each location sets their prices to reflect the average income level of their part of town.

So I do not believe that a national restaurant franchise has to raise the prices at every single location in the country just because of a change in specific one.