Minimum Wage

When I was in high school, I worked as a fry cook at Long John Silver's. When I started the job I made minimum wage ($3.35/hr). After a year of sweating my rear end off I was deemed worthy of a raise. I was granted a full dime raise... $3.45/hour and I felt like I was making a lot of money. Keeping in mind I could fill my gas tank for about 10 bucks and a movie ticket was a only a couple of bucks, I was making decent money for the job I was doing. Working at LJS served as more than a source of income for a high school student. It served as a way of showing me that I needed to go to college if I wanted to make more than minimum wage in my life. Never during my time working a hot, grimy job did it occur to me to DEMAND more money. The job was offered to me at minimum wage. I knew I could take the job or leave it. There was never a promise for great increases in my income. In the end, I took the job and it brought in the money I needed at the time.

I bring up this topic because of the recent reports of fast food workers walking off the job in protest of the low minimum wage. These people claim they cannot make a living at a minimum wage job. In turn they are demanding salaries of more than $15/hr. My response to the claim of not being able to make a living on minimum wage is pretty simple. I say, "No kidding!". Minimum wage jobs are not intended to be full time jobs with which people support their families. Traditionally these jobs have been for students and for people looking to make some extra money. Working at McDonald's is not intended to be a career. If these burger flippers want a good job with a decent wage, they should apply themselves in school. If they are not college material (let's face it, not everybody is cut out for college) they should at least look into a trade school or vocational school. Instead many of these people mess around and sleep through school or completely drop out. If you party through school and put forth absolutely no effort, you shouldn't expect to get a well paying job when you suddenly decide minimum wage is not enough. This is not a snobbish attitude. It's a realistic one. If you want to make a healthy living, quit acting like a knucklehead, apply yourself in school and stop blaming other people for your lack of income. The government DOES NOT owe you a competitive salary. Get out there and EARN it.

If minimum wage goes up to a level that people say they need in order to make a living, I say get ready for automated fast food restaurants. Look below for the fast food employee of the future...

Please note this should read, "$15 AN hour".