welfare vs wages

[jms62]

Originally Posted by Danzig

http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/...employees.html

'But corporate America as a whole has been so successful in squeezing the labor share of national income lower and lower that it's become a substantial constraint to businesses' ability to sell things to people. The cycle of low wages, low demand, weak hiring, weak bargaining power, and low wages just keeps grinding on.'


you'd think corporations would understand that if they paid more, their employees would spend more, thus driving up demand and creating jobs-with more people making money, spending more, etc

They only need to paint a pretty picture for the next earnings report so they can dump their options into a market being supported by fed dollars. The race to the bottom continues.

[jms62]

D.C. awash in contracts, lobbying wealth : Stltoday
http://www.stltoday.com/news/nationa...d3186a960.html

[jms62]

.... the definition of Chutzpah ...

Wal-Mart Asks Customers To Donate Food To Its Needy Employees

http://www.businessinsider.com/walma...e-food-2013-11

[joeydb]

Originally Posted by jms62

.... the definition of Chutzpah ...

Wal-Mart Asks Customers To Donate Food To Its Needy Employees

http://www.businessinsider.com/walma...e-food-2013-11

That really is crazy.

[dellinger63]

Originally Posted by jms62

.... the definition of Chutzpah ...

Wal-Mart Asks Customers To Donate Food To Its Needy Employees

http://www.businessinsider.com/walma...e-food-2013-11

The original version of this story stated that Wal-Mart was asking customers to donate food. The food drive is actually among employees.

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by jms62

.... the definition of Chutzpah ...

Wal-Mart Asks Customers To Donate Food To Its Needy Employees

http://www.businessinsider.com/walma...e-food-2013-11

that's what i'd linked to a couple posts back, slate had an article on it.

it is ridiculous that workers in this country need help. there's no excuse for it, other than corporate greed, with millions going to those at the very top of the company food chain, while many at the bottom have to get assistance from the govt (taxpayers). and that's no excuse at all-it's an explanation as to why.
the govt, who doles out subsidies to many of these businesses, and has been put on the hook by the same to subsidize employees, must take immediate action. raise the minimum wage back to where it used to be, at a level that keeps people above the poverty line like it did before!

[jms62]

Originally Posted by Danzig

that's what i'd linked to a couple posts back, slate had an article on it.

it is ridiculous that workers in this country need help. there's no excuse for it, other than corporate greed, with millions going to those at the very top of the company food chain, while many at the bottom have to get assistance from the govt (taxpayers). and that's no excuse at all-it's an explanation as to why.
the govt, who doles out subsidies to many of these businesses, and has been put on the hook by the same to subsidize employees, must take immediate action. raise the minimum wage back to where it used to be, at a level that keeps people above the poverty line like it did before!

Yet the brainwashed slaves defend the slave masters.

[joeydb]

Originally Posted by jms62

Yet the brainwashed slaves defend the slave masters.

Obamabots defending the Democrats?

[jms62]

Originally Posted by joeydb

Obamabots defending the Democrats?

No the neverwillbe's defending the 1%.

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by joeydb

Obamabots defending the Democrats?

criticisms of something doesn't automatically equal defense of something else. it's not an either/or. i'm sorry you can't learn that, or refuse to accept it.


there is NO reason why, in this land of abundance, anyone who works should be needing govt handouts because their wage is lower than it ought to be.
corporations receive tax breaks, have tax shelters, get subsidized, announce record profits, pay their fat cat upper level management millions, but can't pay an adequate wage.
too many ebenezers, too many bob cratchits. and all of us in the middle support both thru our tax dollars.

[Danzig]

Raising the minimum wage as a tool for economic growth
The immediate benefits of a minimum-wage increase are in the boosted earnings of the lowest-paid workers, but its positive effects would far exceed this extra income. Recent research reveals that, despite skeptics’ claims, raising the minimum wage does not cause job loss.6 In fact, throughout the nation, a minimum-wage increase under current labor market conditions would create jobs. Like unemployment insurance benefits or tax breaks for low- and middle-income workers, raising the minimum wage puts more money in the pockets of working families when they need it most, thereby augmenting their spending power. Economists generally recognize that low-wage workers are more likely than any other income group to spend any extra earnings immediately on previously unaffordable basic needs or services.

Increasing the federal minimum wage to $10.10 by July 1, 2015, would give an additional $51.5 billion over the phase-in period to directly and indirectly affected workers,7 who would, in turn, spend those extra earnings. Indirectly affected workers—those earning close to, but still above, the proposed new minimum wage—would likely receive a boost in earnings due to the “spillover” effect (Shierholz 2009), giving them more to spend on necessities.

This projected rise in consumer spending is critical to any recovery, especially when weak consumer demand is one of the most significant factors holding back new hiring (Izzo 2011).8 Though the stimulus from a minimum-wage increase is smaller than the boost created by, for example, unemployment insurance benefits, it has the crucial advantage of not imposing costs on the public sector.

Assessing the economic benefits of a minimum-wage increase
Showing that raising the minimum wage would be a tool for modest job creation requires an examination of the stimulative effects of minimum-wage increases. Because minimum-wage increases come from employers, we must construct a “minimum-wage increase multiplier” that takes into account the increase in compensation to low-wage workers and the decrease in corporate profits that both occur as a result of minimum-wage increases. Raising the minimum wage means shifting profits from an entity (the employer) that is much less likely to spend immediately to one (the low-wage worker) that is more likely to spend immediately. Thus, increasing the minimum wage stimulates demand for goods and services, leading employers in the broader economy to bring on new staff to keep up with this increased demand.When economists analyze the net economic stimulus effect of policy proposals (e.g., tax rate changes that boost income for some and reduce it for others), they use a set of widely accepted fiscal multipliers to calculate the total increase in economic activity due to a particular increase in spending. In applying these multipliers, economists generally recognize a direct relationship between increased economic activity and job creation. This analysis assumes that a $115,000 increase in economic activity results in the creation of one new full-time-equivalent job in the current economy.9

Using these same standard fiscal multipliers to analyze the jobs impact of an increase in compensation of low-wage workers and decrease in corporate profits that result from a minimum-wage increase, we find that increasing the national minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour by July 1, 2015, would result in a net increase in economic activity of approximately $32.6 billion over the phase-in period, and over that period would generate approximately 140,000 new jobs (see Appendix for methodological details).10 In fact, the hike in the federal minimum wage would create jobs in every state, as seen in Appendix Table 1. (Detailed state-level breakdowns of the demographics of workers who would be affected by the increase—and the degree to which the wages of various types of workers would rise—are available here.) Though the resulting employment impact is modest in the context of the millions of workers currently unemployed nationwide, creating tens of thousands of jobs would be a step in the right direction and would boost the economy.

The benefits of a minimum-wage increase in a weak labor market
Examining the positive effects of a minimum-wage increase leads to an overarching discussion of the economic case for increasing the earnings of the lowest-paid workers while the labor market is weak. In the current economic climate, nearly everything is pushing against wage growth. With 3.4 unemployed workers for each job opening (Shierholz 2013), employers do not have to offer substantial wages to hire the workers they need, nor do they have to pay substantial wage increases to retain workers. Indeed, between 2009 (when the last minimum-wage increase took place) and 2011 (the most recent year for which data are available), nearly every state experienced wage erosion at the 20th percentile (according to an analysis of Current Population Survey data).

Even conservative economists suggest higher wages might help speed the recovery. American Enterprise Institute scholar Desmond Lachman, a former managing director at Salomon Smith Barney, told The New York Times, “Corporations are taking huge advantage of the slack in the labor market—they are in a very strong position and workers are in a very weak position. They are using that bargaining power to cut benefits and wages, and to shorten hours.” According to Lachman, that strategy “very much jeopardizes our chances of experiencing a real recovery” (Powell 2011).

Furthermore, the national unemployment rate currently stands at 7.7 percent and is not expected to return to prerecession levels for several years. Considering the past year’s sluggish job growth rate, a minimum-wage increase that creates about 140,000 net new jobs would help strengthen the recovery.Conclusion
The multiple positive effects that would result from a higher minimum wage are clear: It would boost the earnings of working families hardest hit by the Great Recession, spur economic growth, and create about 140,000 net new jobs. In an economic climate in which wage increases for the most vulnerable workers are scarce, raising the minimum wage to $10.10 by July 1, 2015, is an opportunity that America’s working families cannot afford to lose.

[dellinger63]

Why let the correction of the story get in the way?