Minimum wage should be $22/hr

[live love laugh]

[canetoad]

1. Most things are more expensive

Here (Aus.) than in the US but it can be done without workers having to rely on charity/tips

https://www.fairwork.gov.au/pay-and-wages/minimum-wages#national

The National Minimum Wage

The National Minimum Wage applies to employees not covered by an award or registered agreement. This is the minimum pay rate provided by the Fair Work Act 2009 and is reviewed each year.

As of 1 July 2022 the National Minimum Wage is $21.38 per hour or $812.60 per week.

Employees covered by an award or registered agreement are entitled to the minimum pay rates, including penalty rates and allowances in their award or agreement. These pay rates may be higher than the National Minimum Wage.

[BigmanPigman]

2. And some teachers don't even get that much!

"Meanwhile, the amount of wealth held by families in the US more than tripled from about $38 trillion in 1989 to $140 trillion last year (adj for infaltion). A projected $84 trillion of that money will be passed down from Baby Boomers and older Americans to Millenial and Gen X heirs over the coming two decades."
NYTimes

[JI7]

3. Are there places actually paying 7.25 right now . or under 15 ?

A lot of places are having a hard time hiring and are offering more than the minimum wage.

[live love laugh]

4. Yes. Some employers are still holding out.

[multigraincracker]

5. How come the rules of Capitalism don't

apply to labor cost? Of course the cost of labor is going up because supply is going down. Blame the anti-immigration folks.

[DontBelieveEastisEas]

6. If it's worth doing then pay a living wage

I don't believe in saying that it is okay to allow lower wages for jobs that citizens won't do.
I think it is a cop-out so that they don't have to pay a living wage.
If you cannot pay a sufficient wage, then it should not get done.

Nobody, citizen or non-citizen, should have jobs that underpay.

There might be something for underage workers that pays less, but it would need to prohibit any adults from having those jobs.
And I don't know this is true, I'm just open to discussing it.

Or perhaps someone could make an argument for underpaying individuals that are certified for such positions. For this, I think it would have to be limited to less that x% of the work force, so that it wouldn't be abused for an an excuse to underpay.