The assault on the middle class begins
The assault on the middle class begins with the raising of the minum wage. Poverty and the minimum wage are becoming a major issue in the Democratic presidential race. As a plan to redistribute wealth goes into effect. With false hoods and lies about more income, John Edwards and Barack Obama are emphasizing raising the minimum wage during their tours of impoverished areas.
Edwards, who said he wants to eliminate poverty within a generation, favors raising the minimum wage to $9.50. But he still hires workers on the low end of the pay scale. Obama is advocating a “living wage” that would go up as inflation rises and he has promised to eliminate the phrase “working poor.” Another euphamism to make people feel good.
The first increase in the federal minimum wage in a decade has come. Yet many acknowledge that raising it from $5.15 an hour to $5.85 is just the start. Minimum wage workers will get an additional 70-cent boost each summer for the next two years, ending in 2009 at $7.25 an hour. That comes to just above $15,000 yearly before taxes for a 52-week work year.
What is not factored in is the expense to small buisness the increase causes. How the layoff or non hireing and increase in work load to other employees will be increased as these small companies cannot afford to hire more people or keep as many on the payroll.
According to the National Restaurant Association, the last minimum wage increase cost the restaurant industry more than 146,000 jobs and restaurant owners put off plans to hire an additional 106,000 employees.
At $7.25 an hour, the most likely response from restaurants will be “increases in menu prices, elimination of some positions and reduction of staff hours to try and offset some of the increased labor costs,” said Brendan Flanagan, the association’s vice president of federal relations.
Even then when the full increase is enacted, minimum wage workers will be just scraping by. “It’s not enough money to meet your basic needs, I’m talking about your rent, your gas, and gas to get back and forth to work,” said Sonya Murphy, head organizer of the Mississippi Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN. Of course she tugs at the heart strings to make you believe only the poor will suffer, and not the families who are busting tail to get ahead.
What is being forgotten here is that most minimum wage jobs are entry level, or skilless jobs. Trying to include those jobs that are set below minimum wage like wait staff who make or break a living on thier tips (to insure performance) is fraudualant at the least. Many summer jobs are minimum wage and those who seek these jobs (before illegals take them) are students from collage and high schools. These are to earn a little spending cash for the school year. I myself held several. From working in a lumber yard , to landscaping.
What is being portrayed as a great aid to the lower class is soooo misleading. It is a socialist plan to redistribute wealth. The fact things will now become more expensive is left out of the equation. Meaning that those working for minimum wage will still be stuck behind the eight ball. The real tradgedy of this is that those who are middle class will not see any increase in earnings but a decrease as prices and inflation will take a terrible toll on them. House holds that are considered middle income will be under the crunch as family night will go away. Movie tickets that are ridiculasly high now will go higher. Dinners out will become even more scarce. Then the real big kicker is that spam sandwiches will become envouge again. All in the name of trying to save money and get ahead.
The assault on the middle class begins.
Edwards, who said he wants to eliminate poverty within a generation, favors raising the minimum wage to $9.50. But he still hires workers on the low end of the pay scale. Obama is advocating a “living wage” that would go up as inflation rises and he has promised to eliminate the phrase “working poor.” Another euphamism to make people feel good.
The first increase in the federal minimum wage in a decade has come. Yet many acknowledge that raising it from $5.15 an hour to $5.85 is just the start. Minimum wage workers will get an additional 70-cent boost each summer for the next two years, ending in 2009 at $7.25 an hour. That comes to just above $15,000 yearly before taxes for a 52-week work year.
What is not factored in is the expense to small buisness the increase causes. How the layoff or non hireing and increase in work load to other employees will be increased as these small companies cannot afford to hire more people or keep as many on the payroll.
According to the National Restaurant Association, the last minimum wage increase cost the restaurant industry more than 146,000 jobs and restaurant owners put off plans to hire an additional 106,000 employees.
At $7.25 an hour, the most likely response from restaurants will be “increases in menu prices, elimination of some positions and reduction of staff hours to try and offset some of the increased labor costs,” said Brendan Flanagan, the association’s vice president of federal relations.
Even then when the full increase is enacted, minimum wage workers will be just scraping by. “It’s not enough money to meet your basic needs, I’m talking about your rent, your gas, and gas to get back and forth to work,” said Sonya Murphy, head organizer of the Mississippi Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN. Of course she tugs at the heart strings to make you believe only the poor will suffer, and not the families who are busting tail to get ahead.
What is being forgotten here is that most minimum wage jobs are entry level, or skilless jobs. Trying to include those jobs that are set below minimum wage like wait staff who make or break a living on thier tips (to insure performance) is fraudualant at the least. Many summer jobs are minimum wage and those who seek these jobs (before illegals take them) are students from collage and high schools. These are to earn a little spending cash for the school year. I myself held several. From working in a lumber yard , to landscaping.
What is being portrayed as a great aid to the lower class is soooo misleading. It is a socialist plan to redistribute wealth. The fact things will now become more expensive is left out of the equation. Meaning that those working for minimum wage will still be stuck behind the eight ball. The real tradgedy of this is that those who are middle class will not see any increase in earnings but a decrease as prices and inflation will take a terrible toll on them. House holds that are considered middle income will be under the crunch as family night will go away. Movie tickets that are ridiculasly high now will go higher. Dinners out will become even more scarce. Then the real big kicker is that spam sandwiches will become envouge again. All in the name of trying to save money and get ahead.
The assault on the middle class begins.
