this post was submitted on 14 Feb 2024
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[–] [email protected] 59 points 8 months ago

What if we reduce the cost of living instead, lol jk gotta feed the landlords

[–] [email protected] 39 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Only temporairally. Prices would fall back down again as competition theoretically kicks in.

[–] [email protected] 44 points 8 months ago (2 children)

You don't really believe that, do you?

[–] [email protected] 34 points 8 months ago (1 children)

The wealth will trickle down eventually 👍

[–] [email protected] 13 points 8 months ago

Surely the dragon will be satisfied when we let him eat the next village!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I do. It’s basic market forces.

I say therothetically because the US doesn’t enforce antitrust laws.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago
[–] [email protected] 34 points 8 months ago (3 children)

Prices usually don't fall. Falling prices are generally seen as really bad. Prices instead stop going up so fast.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 8 months ago

To some degree. We’ve seen prices rise in the pandemic and drop back down substantially over time back to pre-pandemic numbers. Look at price trends for construction supplies, for instance. Not sure if that is what you’re referring to, however

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago

Relative to inflation.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Which is "ok" as wages will start to go up over time (for some). But some wages don't climb as fast and some people are on fixed revenue (old people, disabled people).

So it requires readjustments

[–] [email protected] 19 points 8 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Maybe my math is wrong somewhere but I converted to dollars, multiplied the monthly amount by 12, and divided by 2080 (52 weeks*40hrs) and got $7/hr.

If they're excited about the "millions" being helped by a 5% increase to $7/hr their economy is probably not a good comparison to the US.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

Costs of living is not the same, you cannot compare the totals, it is better to compare the rise amount (in wages vs inflation). That was the point of the thread, right?

[–] [email protected] 10 points 8 months ago (3 children)

well yeah but the cost of living would go up even higher.

[–] [email protected] 70 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Pegging the minimum wage to inflation would checks notes only make the poor richer, and we can't have that

[–] [email protected] 30 points 8 months ago

If we're pegging the minimum wage then call me "$7.25 an hour"

[–] [email protected] 28 points 8 months ago (1 children)

You careen right into being priced out of living with that argument. If you are pegged at a constant wage, that was theoretically enough when it was introduced, for more than a decade while the cost of living rises continuously, then you will be priced out of… living.

And that’s not ethical; fake number money should ultimately serve ensuring acceptable lives instead of keeping the cost of living from rising even farther past unlivable. It‘sa already unlivable - it doesn’t matter if it’s 10% over unlivable or 100%, it’s still an unlivable minimum wage.

Money is very evil for people with little of it. There’s a minimum you need to live. If you are under it, you may not live anymore. If you are just over it, you barely survive. If you make three times it, everything is fine. It gets worse from there (like ten times lets you buy a home and accrue equity while not bleeding money to renting housing, and your mortgage is lower than comparable rent to boot).

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

We poor people ARE being priced out of living. It's happening right now!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago

Ye that’s why I posted this one :3 gib us cot adjusted wage; if ur “bidness” cant b profit at living wage then u best git gud or git out

[–] [email protected] 28 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Not reflected in any long-term wage increase or min-wage-introduction economic observations and studies conducted in the last 40 years. This is one of those "it feels 'logical'" talking points that capital likes to tout but is in no way backed up by data or empirical evidence.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago (1 children)

sounds like something somebody who has no problem affording food & shelter would say.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

You're missing my point. The individual experience, while important and not something we should ignore, does not invalidate the now-decades worth of data we have that shows your original posture (raising min wage leads to increased cost of living) is incorrect.

Make no mistake: costs for staple goods have increased in that time and inequality and share of GDP that belongs to labor have gone to hell, but it's not because of minimum wages or in any way related to their increases. If you want to blame anyone blame runaway healthcare costs, consolidation and unenforced monopolization of business, the decoupling of labor efficiency and labor pay, globalization and automation increasing competition and depressing local wages...etc

[–] [email protected] 6 points 8 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago

I'm glad to see other members of the Pickle Party around here.

PICKLES! WILL! PREVAIL!

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Funny story, we are moving out of our apartment to another in the same city, because that is close to $300 cheaper.

We had an issue in the bathroom and the maintenence guy comes and we make small talk. I find that he lives in another apartment complex, the property managers live in another apartment complex, because the ones I live in is expensive and the housing in our city is expensive that none of us can afford to buy one.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago

And they’ve done it, those people are living in the company town :(