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Amazon Will Raise Its Minimum Wage To $15 For All 350,000 US Workers (recode.net)
Amazon said Tuesday it's raising the minimum wage for all 350,000 of its U.S. employees to $15, effective next month. From a report: The new pay threshold will go into effect Nov. 1 and impact all full-time, temporary and seasonal workers across the company's U.S. warehouse and customer service teams as well as Whole Foods, the company said in a blog post. It did not disclose what its current minimum pay wage is for U.S. workers, perhaps in part because there is not one set rate. "We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead," Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos said in a statement. "We're excited about this change and encourage our competitors and other large employers to join us." Alongside the cash compensation bump, Amazon said it will eventually eliminate its practice of granting stock to these workers and will instead institute a program that allows them to purchase Amazon stock through the company. The announcement comes as Amazon faces increased criticism over its pay and treatment of warehouse workers. Senator Bernie Sanders, in particular, has been relentless in his criticism of Amazon over the last few months, proposing a bill that would tax the company as a penalty for having workers who need food stamps and other public assistance to make ends meet.
Nice to see what a REAL economic recovery looks like.
And yes, it IS Trump's fault. Trump isn't ruining the economy since he doesn't "need to remake the US economy [along 'progressive', redistributionist lines based on failed ideas from the 19th century]."
Yeah, Obama kinda left out that part about WHY he had a need to "remake the US economy".
I think the issue that would arise is that (in a vacuum) the cost of that bread is dependent on paying bakery workers $7.50 an hour, and if the minimum wage was determined to be $15, then the labor cost increases the cost of that bread, which has to be adjusted for either in terms of quality/quantity of materials, or in an increased overall price. Suddenly the $15 bread-adjusted minimum wage has to be increased, and so on. Bread is cheap, so it's sort of an abstract example - but it's still a matter of labor value compared to the value of what the labor creates. They are certainly tied to each other, but not at parity. At least that's the economic argument - I'm sure there are plenty who would dispute it. And I'm sure it doesn't always hold true, and it doesn't account for government subsidies, etc. You're right, it's not a single shot solution, but it's an interesting thought. I wonder how something like that could happen but also not result in price increases when the market determines that the value of someone making bread is less than the value of the bread itself. I would argue that if companies weren't subsidized both in tax breaks and in not having to pay higher wages (due to knowing that their employees can get benefits to fund the gap) that they would be forced to compete more on wages and benefits, but that too is in a vacuum. I would be curious to see what an Amazon with no tax incentives or minimum wage, competing with other companies with neither, would fare and at what level their wages would end up.
Why lead and suggest other companies go to $15 for their minimum pay? At this time they will be paying a premium for workers. This is just good business. They will retain workers better, and attract better workers. Turns out if you pay more you get to pick from more applicants with better skills.
So why would you want your competition to meet the same pay? I suppose this is simply a political move. Looks good if you go first. Unfortunately, in the business world this will be forgotten by next Monday.
Not sure what the impact will be about the stock grants their losing. Maybe they will give a discounted stock purchase plan, which might compensate the lost income. Also, you don't need to hold the stock grants till they mature, usually like 4 years for all of the grant.
The $15 wage floor is slightly reminescent of Henry Ford's "$5 day" policy, which bought Ford labor peace and productivity for a few years. Soon enough, others were able to match or exceed Ford's labor rates. Some of it was fueled by productivity and sales, but a lot of it represented more rapid expansion of M2 by banks and the Fed in the 1910s. Forbes on Ford's $5 day NPR
The frightening aspect is price inflation that has already occurred and will accompany a broader application like a $15 minimum wage. Such a tremendous rising wage is a symptom of expansion of credit and money.printing, courtesy of the Federal Reserve since 2008.
trickle up and trickle down
Any additional income paid to people will simply be spent. I think this was researched in Texas where they found pay rises generate a lot of economic activity.
Paying people more money is a way to get more money into circulation instead of it sitting inside a bank account doing nothing.
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
The tax is a penalty for hiring crappy workers.
What they choose isn't relevant, basically never is. They made all their choices that mattered in middle and high school.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
...which is fine. Anti-union campaigns that involve smearing unions and firing unionization advocates suck. Anti-union campaigns that involve improving conditions for workers so they don't need to unionize are a good thing. Even the unions will tell you that.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
Yes, so outrageously expensive that Amazon is voluntarily increasing wages to match the goal.
But since you seem content to use your tax dollars to supplement inadequate pay, why not just finish the job and implement the basic income?