how many numbers out there are DECENT job?

after choosing between unemployment or indecent job... they will realize they will earn enough with flipping burger.... with less stress....

look at the unemployment rate esp for new grads.... and the rate that they are earning.... not so far away from 15$

a good example is a popular course in college which is BS Psych (if they can find a job) has a median of 35k.... either lower or greater.... at $15 you can earn almost 30k a year (roughly with a median of 28k)

so yeah we will see a lot of degree holder flipping burger

All those fat cats talk about trickle down economics like it's something great and yet they keep the wealth for themselves. 

Seriously if a company is extremely successful, then those who work for it not just the boss, should get paid better as a reward for doing so well. Everyone who works for a company plays their part in helping a company to do well, all the boss does is own it. He or she would be no where without all the workers they hired, they need to stop taking the piss. And if the company does bad, EVERYONE earns less as an incentive to do better. Currently, all that happens is that some workers lose their jobs while there bosses get richer yet, they get away with their mistakes and seem to get rewarded for it with bonuses. It's not good enough.

Companies need to be economically, socially and enviromentally responsible for their actions and impact on society. All i see right now is just pure greed. Stuff like automation and outsourcing of jobs just proves it. They get away with paying little for an African or a Chinese person (or anyone else in the developing world) to do the same thing and don't have to pay a machine at all as it's non-living being.  i don't think thats right. 

Also, funily enough when the "good industries" all get outsourced, it's low skill jobs or high skill jobs which require decrees that remain, there's no in between. So it's not suprising that many people must rely either on government benefits or on a low paid job. Had we (most of the western world) kept most of our manufacturing industries like Germany did, the low paid and low skill jobs would mostly be for the young who could live on it, not adults who need far better wages to live on. And the German economy has only kept it's manufacturing jobs thanks to government regulation and unions. These private companies would of left Germany had they had the chance and yet despite higher labour costs, companies like VW are very profitable. 

And who are you to decide how much somebody else is worth?

If corporations had it their way, they'd still be paying them $2 an hour and people like you would still be saying they don't deserve more!  The problem is they will pay people as little as they can get away with and people will line up to defend them!

I understand that.  I understand all of that.  In the past I have made every conservative economic argument in the book!  I fully grasp these basic concepts.  And I've grown to see that it's not the best way of doing things.

I'm not saying rich people are bad.  I'm not saying their spending doesn't create economic activity.

What I'm saying is that wide income gaps are a detriment to society, and to the economy.

Exhibit A:  Corporations are making record profits but they are not expanding and hiring like all the conservatives said they would.  The problem: Companies expand and hire NOT because of the money they make, but because of the money the CAN make.  They will not expand or hire if the opportunity for growth is not there.  This is where income inequality comes into play.  As a portion of Americans see their expendable income shrinking from rising costs and flat wages, they don't have money to spend on non-necessities. Thus, economic growth opportunities are limited as a business's customer base spends less money.  A company doesn't open a store because they CAN, but because it's profitable.  And when the money is only the hands of a small portion of people, those opportunities simply aren't there.

I was working, for a couple dollars over minimum, with a guy who was making yet a couple dollars over me.  But even then he lamented how the job paid less than a job he was able to get right out of high school, decades ago.

Wake up!  This country is heading downhill fast!  College is more and more out of reach, families can't survive without help from the government!  We're in bad shape and pompous, out-of-touch, ill-informed attitudes like yours are only going to keep driving us into oblivion.

I don't know where your from, but here in Canada, school teachers, cops, soldiers... They get paid pretty handsomely and they get great benefits.

Minimum wage is not enough to live off of today. 

Fast food workers, retail workers.  There are some people working these shitty jobs (somebody has to do them) and yes, I believe they deserve more for what they do.  Some are very hard workers. 

For some people, it is the only option they have.
Getting an education is expensive as hell.

As a employee at a fast food restaurant for over a year now, and a manager. I can firmly say that alot of you clearly are out of touch with the current economic situation.

Among the crew-members I manage about half of them graduated from college, are students, and or minors. The problem isn't that they should get low pay because they aren't skilled enough to earn more, it's that since minors get paid less than adults period, $7.40 just isn't acceptable wages for the line of work my employees are in.  i'm not sure if this goes for every fast food restaurant but the one I manage is downright hell. You get burned alot, it's A TON of hard physical labor under HARSH conditions, you don't get free meals, crew member get 25 hours a week, and to top it off, right now with the economy nobody in my area is really hiring.

I'm tired of seeing the whole, 'Work harder for a better paying job, get a degree" etc, speaking as if people with degrees aren't struggling at the moment as well. So per say you're underemployed, got a degree, went to a nice school and everything society requested of you...and you're stuck with 0 job opportunities. What do you tell those people? While I do agree the $15 a hour thing is humorous and overblown, I firmly believe that if a company doesn't want to cover the employees insurance, FINE, however if they're gonna give them short hours a  modest $1 - $2 in pay would definitely help, and make workers more enthusiastic, trust me, I'm a fucking manager and I only get paid $1 over minimuim wage. Job is stressful as shit and physically demanding and I hate it...but no other options at the moment as I'm still in school.

As a manager I also am responsible for putting up stock trucks...and let's just say our weekly stock comes up to 2k - 2.5k and our weekly payroll is 2.5k - 3k. Total revenue for one week averages out to $31,200. After paying other fees and utilities the restauraunt brings in 20K in profits, EASILY. And the people who literally RUN the business day in and day out get paid $8.50. 

I don't know if any of you guys were managers before but it definitely does require skill, patience, and dedication. You're on call 24/7 you're in charge of handling labor, any food gets stolen you pay for it, customer complaints, health inspections, assessments, meetings, shortages, bosses...it's all pretty hectic and to put bluntly. I've worked better jobs, for MORE money, for LESS work.

The fast food industry is making a killing on underemployed people and minorities. If other entry level jobs can pay $8+++ then why the hell can't a fast food joint can't? To put simply it's greed, they don't care about the employees nor the economy, only the profits in the franchise owner's hands....I can't wait to quit this filthy industry to be honest.

Georgia--where cops and teachers don't get paid crap.  Trust me on this.  Now, I'm sure the cost of living is lower than most bigger cities so everything's relative, I guess.  Maybe a New York cop or teacher has it a little better.  Around here, every cop has to work a second job.