Re: Don't raise the minimum wage!!!
Well where I come from minimum wage is also an issue. Not only do we have a minimum wage but we have negotiated terms that require "blue collar" workers get an additional 2% increase over and above what the average "white collar" workers increase would be. This to redress the wrongs of the past.
It has been said that increasing the minimum wage will reduce crime. Our crime statistics show that this is not the case as a life in crime will exceed minimum wage. In fact crime is on the increase as is the level of violence.
It is common in many societies to find ways to take from the rich and to give to the poor. This discourages the rich from creating further wealth and employment opportunities and encourages them to be less then honest on company returns. Additionally it teaches the poor that it is not your merits that get you ahead but that it is good to penalise the sucessful in your favour.
95% of all labour issues in my business come from those at or around minimum wage level. Theft of company property, abuse of sick leave which to 90% is seen as an entitlement and and extension to annual leave. In fact it has now got to the point that demands are being made company's to increase their social responsibility levels by assisting employees with personal loans and funeral loans. This coupled with constant labour union action trying to regrade jobs to improve the hourly rate get more for the worker is taking significantly more mangement time.
If we have a minimum wage then too we must have a minimum work ethic and efficiency. If I pay you $10 then PRODUCE $10 amount of work. If you want to get ahead then give me $12 in value while I pay you $10 and you will most certainly be earning more in the future. The single largest change you can make to your income is to get promoted.
Currently my experience is that we pay $10 and get $6 in value. They are the last to arrive the first to leave, clock watchers of note, this coupled with all the sick leave, means that the minimum wage is in fact significantly higher than the face value of the hourly rate. We may even pay up to twice the minimum rate if we were to measure it correctly.
Some workers have elected to lift themselves, and through hard work have proved that you can rise above poverty. This hard work has resulted in improved income, the opportunity for advanced training etc. I had a floor sweeper who has risen to a sales position and who earns 8x the minimum wage. Unfortunately this is the exception and not the rule, success has it's price, its called continual consistent and intelligent hard work.
I suppose the single biggest reason for a minimum wage is to ensure that unscrupulous employers do not create "sweat shops".
We need to get out of this "you owe me culture" and move to a more "what can I do to get ahead" culture. We have begun to live in the age of the alibi, it is always someone elses fault for our inabilities and failures.
The single biggest negative for me is that increased employment costs plays right into the hands of the developing giants like China. It is a question of time before many manufacturing countries become traders as we simply will not be able to compete. We are begining to price ourselves out of the market. By way of example. 10 years ago we had 5 manufacturers of small electric motors, we now have none. In fact we are begining to phase out the repair of motors under 50hp as you can buy two Chinese replacements for the same as the local repair costs of one. Oh by the way China now has in excess of 200 motor manufacturers.
Unfortunately this is pure economics. As long as developing countries are prepared to work for lower wages with higher outputs the minimum wage argument becomes irrelevant. Higher wages will lead to uncompetitive product which will lead to loss of business and consequent loss of jobs.
Having said all that I am in favour of a minimum wage but believe that it should be structured differently with a larger portion of the wage being performance based, much like a salesman. The problem is that this is time consuming to administer and is still open to abuse. It is a question of supply and demand, too much labour results in lower rates, this applies to all jobs, even the most senior.
Does this make me a Republican or a Democrat??d
Cheers
Andrew
