> In states like Texas minimum wage is still $7.25/hr and many places pay just that.
> How do you reconcile your numbers with that?
'Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Stanley W. Suchman noted that the 196,000 workers earning the federal minimum wage or less made up 3.1 percent of all hourly paid workers in the state. Nationwide, those earning the federal minimum or less accounted for 2.3 percent of the hourly paid workforce.'
It doesn't matter what the minimum wage is though, it matters what people are actually paid. Denmark doesn't have a minimum wage and they're doing okay.
> Bills have outpaced wages to the point nearly a whole generation of young adults have given up on home ownership and have had to move back home.
Not true, and Texas is fairly affordable. (It's blue states that aren't because they all refuse to build homes.)
> Mortgages are increasing in years and rates, even new cars have.
Rate increases theoretically don't affect the total price of a new mortgage because you can negotiate the sale price down to make up for it. Supply and demand is what controls the total price. Higher rates do reduce new construction though.
Cars got more expensive because they stopped making cheap new cars, which is bad, but it's not 100% of CPI any more than rent is.
> Income inequality has never been higher and you're seriously saying it's gotten better since the greatest wealth transfer in history?!
No, income (wage) inequality peaked in 2014 and has been flat since, then decreased since 2019.
The real great wealth transfer in history was the 2020 CARES act giving a lot of money to the poor. We should do it again. (This is the one that a lot of people online like to say "we only got $600" about which is a straight up lie. It was up to $2400/month for an unemployed mother with children.)
The one that went up is wealth inequality, meaning value of unrealized assets like stock portfolios. But that's not nearly as real as cash. (Also, our top tech billionaires Gates/Bezos/Musk helped inequality out by losing half of their wealth by cheating on their wives or buying Twitter.)
> Denmark doesn't have a minimum wage and they're doing okay.
It’s more complicated than that, and you know it, or you’re using that fact to further your point somewhat disingenuously. Yes, there in no minimum wage defined by law, but in practice it’s around €20 due to the collective bargaining agreements (read: unions) in most industries.
There's nothing to hide here. Just look at the median wage in both places. Or in this case, the lowest 10% wage.
I prefer Australia's wage board system, but I think nobody knows how it works because they're Australian so they've given stupid names to everything. Try and guess what "award" and "casual loading" mean.
I disagree. I live here and regularly see people exploited. It's not uncommon for students from romania/moldavia/bulgaria being paid a literal token fee per hour just so they can register enough hours to claim SU. Job listings advertising this fact brazenly, because its not even illegal... Similarly a whole bunch of workers here in nordjylland's factory farms get paid ridiculously low salaries per hour. We're talking 70kr per hour or less.
In states like Texas minimum wage is still $7.25/hr and many places pay just that.
How do you reconcile your numbers with that?
Bills have outpaced wages to the point nearly a whole generation of young adults have given up on home ownership and have had to move back home.
Mortgages are increasing in years and rates, even new cars have.
Income inequality has never been higher and you're seriously saying it's gotten better since the greatest wealth transfer in history?!