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Post by myboysnme on Jun 16, 2021 12:15:07 GMT
Our minimum wage was just raised to $9.50. My daughter in law is filling in at a bakery making specialty pastries. She is the baker. They pay her $10 an hour no benefits. She was offered full time but can't afford to take it. She is currently making $15 and benefits at her current job but it is an hour commute. She would love to take the bakery position full time but she can't afford to. The owner said she can't afford to pay more so they are at an impasse. Owner has had to close the business many times in the past month or two because she has no staff to work the hours she is open. If she paid more she would have more staff. Certainly closing doesn't bring in any income so she's in a catch 22. Her chef left because of pay. The chef can get a job anyplace at this point. I feel bad for everyone.
O the other side my ac went out last week. It is taking a full 7 days to get a repairman out here. They have more business than technicians. I'm sure they are making a nice salary. I have been pretty close to offering to pay them double if they will just get out here to my house. But I have held off.
Bottom line is if the 16 year old at the donut shop was on her own she would be hardly making enough to support herself with $16 an hour. If the Donut Shop can pay that amount then I am happy for the workers. Maybe they can actually save a little bit, or pay for auto insurance or a phone, or a car, or rent, or college, or decent work shoes. I spent 2 months off my feet as a teen from working long hours with the cheapest work shoes available. I tore my arches. Never underestimate an investment in great shoes, and maybe now they can afford some.
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Post by busy on Jun 16, 2021 15:48:14 GMT
Just putting it out there that low wage jobs ≠ jobs without degrees and further jobs that don't require degrees ≠ unskilled labor. There are lots and lots of skilled people without degrees who make more than many people with degrees do, in a wide variety of fields. I know loads of people in tech who don't have degrees and are earning well over $100k, and I also know a lot of people with degrees who barely break $60k.
I know that wasn't the point of the thread, but it bugs me to see income and educational attainment assumed to always go together, especially given the current cost of higher ed and the shameful student debt situation in our country.
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Post by busy on Jun 16, 2021 15:55:37 GMT
It's been in the news here that the federal fire fighters that live here in California don't even make California minimum wage. They are paid $11.50/hour. To possibly die fighting a wildfire. It's insane. You think that's bad... what about the incarcerated people on those wildfire fighting teams? link
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Post by Bridget in MD on Jun 16, 2021 16:15:17 GMT
I mean, the majority of Americans do not have college degrees (it is under a third), so I would hope that people without college degrees, we would all agree, still should be paid a living wage, even if the job is one some people would consider “unskilled” (me, there is a lot of “unskilled” labor I think I would really suck at performing, so I do not like that label). What that rate is I would think would vary geographically. But (and this is not aimed at you), it absolutely amazes me that we moved from debating, in the 1980s, whether people should have to work in order to get the money to cover basic expenses, to, now, debating whether people who work should earn enough to cover basic expenses. Anyhow, that’s not an answer. Yes, I am guessing that paying more would get more workers — it seems like we have been told that for years? — but I also wonder if some of the shortages in some places are due to things like the collapse of childcare for many women. Is this true? It feels like this is a lot higher (but maybe bc we just went through the college application process with my kid!)
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Post by ntsf on Jun 16, 2021 16:16:50 GMT
with the early release of prisoners in ca due to covid, there are fewer inmate firefighters. also, the gov is shrinking the program and hiring more people for calfire. I was on a forest service firefighter crew..we got one week of training. people who used chainsaws or were tanker truck drivers got more training. but one week covered a lot.
that article is not very clear about the municipal/wildland firefighting difference.
people who work for US forest service firefighting do not need to be EMT's or paramedics--they are hired to fight fire. city, county and state firefighters are often required to be emts or paramedics because that is the bulk of the work--actually fighting fire is a more limited part of the work. so it is apples to oranges..
are there problems with the inmate firefighting program? sure. could it be reformed more and give more a way to move back into society? sure. firefighting in the wildland is a dirty, thankless kind of job..for anyone. some love it, some love the money, some stay for a long time and become supervisors, some just do it for a season or two. hotshot and helicopter crews are at far greater risk.
so take these articles with a grain of salt.
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lizacreates
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,856
Aug 29, 2015 2:39:19 GMT
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Post by lizacreates on Jun 16, 2021 16:27:27 GMT
I’m frankly shocked by this. $10/hr for a home healthcare nurse?! My mother has a full-time live-in aide (not a nurse) who works five days/week. Care, light housekeeping and very minimal cooking (I’m the one who supplies cooked meals). My late father’s trust pays the aide $3,200/mo, so about $740/wk. Sometimes she works more than 40 hrs/wk and sometimes less, depending on my mom’s needs. That's $18.50/hr. And she gets a $1,500 annual bonus at Christmas from mom. I looked at the rate my state pays for seniors who qualify for part-time aides (again, not nurse) through Medicaid with maximum 20 hrs/week and the rate is $15.00/hr. I don’t know how anyone can get senior care for $10/hr! I agree. My friend is a teacher and her husband receives SSI disability, so they’re not in a position to supplement or pay for her mother’s care outright. Poor people get old, too - and this is what our “pro-life” state pays the people taking care of them? ETA: I went back and looked at her post, and they’re looking for a health aide, not a health nurse. Still. $10/hr for such a difficult job? It’s pathetic. I feel for your friend, the mother and the underpaid workers. When I dug deeper into the disparities in pay, I realized that the healthcare aides who were paid decent wages belonged to unions that are able to negotiate effectively with state legislatures. But the bottom line is, if the state legislature is not willing to increase the wages and seek a higher reimbursement from Medicare and Medicaid, then the wages continue to be depressed. (In IL, the largest union has been able to negotiate a $17.25/hr rate effective in eighteen months.) Anyway, I didn’t want to leave this thread without at least providing something that might be helpful to friend. I don’t know which TX program friend’s mom is under, but these are the ones I’ve seen. I don’t know if this is helpful at all but maybe friend can explore these further to get a solution: (1) Community First Choice – Medicaid-based, no waiting list, supportive services for the elderly (2) STAR+PLUS Waiver – Medicaid waiver, services through managed care orgs, client can choose preferred provider (3) Community Attendant Services Program- Medicaid-funded, up to 50 hrs/wk of assisted daily living services, clients can get through care agency or choose their own caregiver (4) Community Care for the Aged and Disabled – non-Medicaid, provides services chosen by clients (5) Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly – provides medical care and day services (probably means ADLs), available for both Medicare or Medicaid recipients
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Post by epeanymous on Jun 16, 2021 16:42:23 GMT
I mean, the majority of Americans do not have college degrees (it is under a third), so I would hope that people without college degrees, we would all agree, still should be paid a living wage, even if the job is one some people would consider “unskilled” (me, there is a lot of “unskilled” labor I think I would really suck at performing, so I do not like that label). What that rate is I would think would vary geographically. But (and this is not aimed at you), it absolutely amazes me that we moved from debating, in the 1980s, whether people should have to work in order to get the money to cover basic expenses, to, now, debating whether people who work should earn enough to cover basic expenses. Anyhow, that’s not an answer. Yes, I am guessing that paying more would get more workers — it seems like we have been told that for years? — but I also wonder if some of the shortages in some places are due to things like the collapse of childcare for many women. Is this true? It feels like this is a lot higher (but maybe bc we just went through the college application process with my kid!) Here’s just the first one that comes up when you Google: www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2021/02/22/new-from-us-census-bureau-number-of-americans-with-a-bachelors-degree-continues-to-grow/amp/It may often feel like everyone goes to college, and a higher percentage of people do attend some college, but, yeah.
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Post by Merge on Jun 16, 2021 16:45:27 GMT
Just putting it out there that low wage jobs ≠ jobs without degrees and further jobs that don't require degrees ≠ unskilled labor. There are lots and lots of skilled people without degrees who make more than many people with degrees do, in a wide variety of fields. I know loads of people in tech who don't have degrees and are earning well over $100k, and I also know a lot of people with degrees who barely break $60k. I know that wasn't the point of the thread, but it bugs me to see income and educational attainment assumed to always go together, especially given the current cost of higher ed and the shameful student debt situation in our country. I’m sorry. I was trying to avoid saying “unskilled labor” because I know that’s not the case, and wasn’t sure how else to categorize these jobs that are so underpaid. I guess simply calling them underpaid would have been most accurate. I have a plumber here right now replacing my toilet and his labor costs for a couple of hours are more than I make in a day, so … 😬
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Post by Merge on Jun 16, 2021 20:16:26 GMT
UPDATE - I emailed our next door neighbor in Maine to see if she knew anyone, and it turns out that she and her friend clean part time. She’s going to work for us this summer. She quoted me a rate that I feel is fair, so we’re going with that. **** The babysitting rate thread and some other things have me thinking - what is a reasonable wage for work that doesn’t require a college degree? We own a rental house in Maine. We cannot currently find a turnover cleaning service to work with us this summer. Everyone is short -staffed. Our problem is caused partly by my not reaching out to them sooner, of course, but it got me to wondering if those jobs paid more, would they still be short-staffed? We as the homeowners would also have pay a higher rate for the cleanings, of course, which we may not may not be able to pass on to renters. Another instance - a friend just posted that she’s looking for a qualified home healthcare nurse who can work with her (admittedly difficult) elderly mom. She’s found the ones they tried so far subpar. The kicker is that the state pays for this, and the state only pays $10/hr. I’m not surprised that there is a shortage of people willing to work for so little to take care of a woman who - reading between the lines in my friend’s post - is possibly given to racist invective and other verbal abuse when she is displeased. You can make more working fast food here. Some food for thought. I think there’s a disconnect between what some people who frequently reference “back in the day” think of as a reasonable wage, and the opinions of those who actually work for such wages. Bump for update.
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Post by dewryce on Jun 16, 2021 20:17:36 GMT
So glad you found a good solution, hope she works out long term! It will also be nice to have someone you trust next door with a key to the place in case something happens.
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Post by busy on Jun 16, 2021 21:13:57 GMT
with the early release of prisoners in ca due to covid, there are fewer inmate firefighters. also, the gov is shrinking the program and hiring more people for calfire. I was on a forest service firefighter crew..we got one week of training. people who used chainsaws or were tanker truck drivers got more training. but one week covered a lot. that article is not very clear about the municipal/wildland firefighting difference. people who work for US forest service firefighting do not need to be EMT's or paramedics--they are hired to fight fire. city, county and state firefighters are often required to be emts or paramedics because that is the bulk of the work--actually fighting fire is a more limited part of the work. so it is apples to oranges.. are there problems with the inmate firefighting program? sure. could it be reformed more and give more a way to move back into society? sure. firefighting in the wildland is a dirty, thankless kind of job..for anyone. some love it, some love the money, some stay for a long time and become supervisors, some just do it for a season or two. hotshot and helicopter crews are at far greater risk. so take these articles with a grain of salt. Our country treats incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people like garbage. This is just one more thing that illustrates it.
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craftymom101
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,568
Jul 31, 2014 5:23:25 GMT
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Post by craftymom101 on Jun 16, 2021 21:17:48 GMT
Before I started my teaching job (high school biology teacher), I subbed for four years while going to school.
I made $8.25/hour.
This was 2015-2019 in Florida.
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Post by hop2 on Jun 16, 2021 21:20:23 GMT
UPDATE - I emailed our next door neighbor in Maine to see if she knew anyone, and it turns out that she and her friend clean part time. She’s going to work for us this summer. She quoted me a rate that I feel is fair, so we’re going with that. That’s great!
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Post by shanniebananie on Jun 16, 2021 21:36:18 GMT
My husband's company owns hotels across the country in every price point. They are incredibly short staffed for house keepers and most hourly positions. Don't expect your room to be cleaned every day or probably ever during your stay this summer.. They are only cleaning on checkout because no one will come to work for what they consider a "low" wage.
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janeinbama
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,164
Location: Alabama
Jan 29, 2015 16:24:49 GMT
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Post by janeinbama on Jun 17, 2021 0:23:26 GMT
What a great update! No worries about clean house for your renters! I hope next year to contact you about your rental - come on retirement!!!!
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