why not call it a living wage. And yes, a private in the army should also make a living wage. But remember that the Army also provides housing for members, and food, and clothing, and medical care. Not quite an equivalent situation.

If a fast-food worker can make $15, many people who are in jobs that currently pay less, or not much higher, will have an incentive to leave their jobs for one that pays better. As a result, employers who underpay their workers will feel pressure to increase their wages. This process will repeat itself, each time at a higher wage level, until everyone's wages will go up.

Seriously, this argument is incredibly selfish. It always depresses me that people can be so self-centered. If we're so near-sighted that we only care about ourselves and don't want anyone else to do better, we will never achieve much as a society. I hope most people are smart and thoughtful enough to be able to see the trees and the forest.

And I say this as someone who was a Marine. yes base pay is low and yes low ranking enlisted people are underpaid, be we also got paid housing, medical care and food.

When I was on active duty, E-1's with families qualified for food stamps and other benefits.

Every year the military would send us an itemized list of all of our benefits and how much it would equate to in the real world. We all thought that they inflated it considerably. However, the benefits are quite good and do matter. I would say that an E-1 whose annual base pay is currently 18.8K per year (somewhere around $9.50/hr) would probably need to make around $35K in the real world (around $17.5/hr) to have the same benefits/lifestyle.

Not the Army, but the min wage increase. This user did not want McDonald's workers to earn more money because she said it would devalue her degree and her hard work.

Has she missed the parts where he says that when other people struggle to pay their bills or get the health care they need, it hurts all of us? Does she not see that when the weakest among us do well, we all do better?

Does she not understand that she is already paying to support McDonald's workers? People who can't make ends meet end up needing welfare and food stamps. By allowing the minimum wage to be so low, we're using our taxes to enrich the owners and highest-paid earners at McDonald's. The money that could be used to build roads and bridges instead goes toward feeding the people McDonald's should be paying fairly in the first place.

If this is the level at which this person thinks and functions, her education has been completely wasted on her. Seriously, people like this cause me to lose all hope for this country's future. It's sad that such selfishness and such a total lack of empathy are not considered shameful in this country. People should feel ashamed, not proud, to express such views.

Well said!

That said, the comparison isn't really fair. Yes, as an E-2 I griped about the pay, but I also had free housing, food, and medical, plus job training.

We need to make sure they are poor as dirt and feel bad about themselves.

It's interesting. The speaker avoids the motive: I don't want fast food workers having a living wage because fast food workers should be people I can look down on, they should suffer in some way or I can't feel superior. I am just using the army (which has room and board and medical care which should be added in, that is compensation, or bills they don't have) because I know they are a sympathetic group and it won't look like it is about me.

Post #5 above demonstrates the accuracy of your interpretation.

I am not kidding

Privates get BELOW minimum wage. Even though they may work 24 hrs. doesn't mean they get paid for all 24 hrs.

When I was retired 4-1/2 years later as a Captain over 4 it was $801.60. Not exactly living high on the hog, but we had allowances and benefits.

Just don't know how much. I'm pretty sure they will be looking at that when or if it passes. (Remember republicans will be fighting it.) As others have said here benefits are in built in the budget for soldiers pay. I retired from a a well paid job from a large company. The reason I took a lower paying job from them wasn't only based on the hourly rate. It was based on the total package they offered over my previous employer. Insurance, retirement, stock sharing, continuing education, etc add up. My wife worked for a small company that did not offer any retirement or insurance. But she made more per hour then if she went with a larger company with better benefits.

The normal minimum wage worker doesn't get very many benefits if any. Some companies will even do things like limit the employee hours so they can still be considered temporary employees and receive none. Next thing I saw a study awhile back on housing. Even renting a apartment someone who made under 15$ per hour would not be rented to. The cost of living is too high and they knew the renter probably would not be able to make payments.

When my husband served, the only bills we had were cable, car insurance, car payment, groceries and a credit card. The rest was covered by the military, including eye care and prescriptions. I gave birth and only paid $25 for 4 day stay.

Fast food workers just want to be able to afford rent and groceries. That is not too much to ask.

Oh well.

Hope you have a great weekend.

Honest question - I really don't know. If they do, that's at least worth 10k or more.

as the base pay suggests.

not deserving of a living wage. Anyone who works full time ought not live in poverty. No matter if they flip burgers, run a cash register at wal mart or work in a factory. Arguing otherwise implies that some are more deserving of a living wage than others.

The answer to the military being underpaid is not to screw a working group that is worse off. What's wrong with both groups getting a raise?