California lawmakers are poised to raise the state's minimum wage by 25% -- a move that would make the state's hourly workers among the most highly paid in the country.
Millions of workers would see their hourly pay jump from $8 to $9 on July 1, 2014 and to $10 on Jan. 1, 2016, under legislation which received strong support this week from the state's Governor Jerry Brown and other legislative leaders.
"The minimum wage has not kept pace with rising costs," Brown said in a statement. "This legislation is overdue and will help families that are struggling in this harsh economy."
More than 90% of minimum-wage workers in the state are over the age of 20, while nearly 2.4 million of the state's children live in a household with a parent who earns minimum wage, according to the statement.
The proposed bump would boost a full-time worker's income by about $4,000 to around $20,000 a year, still several thousand dollars below the poverty level for a family of four.
For more: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/california-poised-raise-minimum-wage-200300997.html
On the surface this sounds not only fair, but also..... due. The problem is however what will happen when this takes effect and many businesses find that their employment costs have risen to a point that they have to lay people off? It may also put some manufacturers in a position where an increase will finally push them to look into having their manufacturing done either in Mexico or off shore. This will cause the loss of more jobs.
The US government has to put some sort of legislation in effect where American manufacturers, living in the USA, can less easily have manufacturing done in other countries when the same items can be manufactured in the USA. Canada should do the same.
"I never seen any TV set "Made in Canada"."
That is because you are a young man.
Long time ago, we had a Zenith - made in Canada (Kitchener if I recall well)
The problem with N. American manufacturing is it has become almost standard procedure to look for off shore or down south manufacturing plants because the workers get paid so little. Many of these workers in foreign countries have been shown to work in atrocious conditions and are intimidated by their employers. As also has been shown by some tragedies the people work in unsafe conditions which has cost many of them their lives. These people are being 'used', by our business owners, because of their poverty. Even China with a Communist government and a horrible human rights record......both the business owners and stock holders and the average citizen buying goods in Canada could care less...........as long as they are making money or saving money. For the most part the Canadian or American business owners don't care about these people as long as the product is made reasonably well and ...........cheap.
As far as I am concerned it's slave labour, modern version. No more plantations with slave bosses.....we have progressed into a new era of faux-legitimacy under the external appearance of helping people when the underlying motive is making more money. It makes me laugh when I think how we strut around talking about freedom and liberty and democracy and equality and at times even sending troops into countries to 'supposedly save' the people...........but when it comes to business.......ahhhh that's another sent of values!
As Pierre pointed out, yes we did have a Canadian TV manufacturer and the US had many. We also had lots of other manufacturers, but they are all gone now because it is cheaper for our own Canadian and American business owners to hire slave labour elsewhere. I remember last year on the TV show 'The Shark Tank' where people propose new business ideas, a man was manufacturing a product (I forget now what it was exactly) and when it came to 'costs' he was ridiculed by Kevin O'Leary for not having it made off shore where O'Leary as an investor could make more ...........money. The business owner however, to his credit, stuck to his guns and said he would keep his manufacturing in the small US town where it was employing a lot of people. We need more people like that man in Canada, the US and even other countries where too business owners have set their integrity aside for the holy dollar bill.
On the other hand, manufacturing in North America has little to do with minimum wages.
The real problem is people working 35 to 40 hours a week for $8 an hour before deductions! NOBODY can live properly on that minimum wage in Los Angeles or San Francisco. $10 may not be the best solution but it is a start. And yes, raising the minimum wagew will create some losses of minimum wage jobs.
And yes, folks may have to pay $3 for a hamburger instead of $2.50.
