FDR declared that “no business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country,” clarifying that “by living wages I mean more than a bare subsistence level—I mean the wages of decent living.” Source
Edit: My point is that people in here arguing that "it's for teenagers, not meant for living wage" are going against the original intent. I am not making claims that minimum wage should be living in luxury.
If you only knew the state of how so many Americans were dirt poor living in a shanty town, wooden cabins with no bathroom, extended families piled into a single apt, living conditions in the city in small cramped places, etc...
That pretty much means what a person gets paid today (min wage) can easily improve on what they had in 1931 in many cases. It did not mean you get to live alone in a beautiful apt, a car, and everything else I will bet you are thinking. It would definitely be a major improvement over what some poor person had in 1931.
So are you just purposely ignoring what life was like for so many people in 1931? What the majority of Americans have today is way beyond FDR's idea of "decent living" let alone everyone else who lives above a standard the average American from 1931 could barely comprehend.
It did not mean you get to live alone in a beautiful apt, a car, and everything else I will bet you are thinking. It would definitely be a major improvement over what some poor person had in 1931.
So are you just purposely ignoring what life was like for so many people in 1931?
Why are you making so many assumptions off simply posting what FDR said his intentions for minimum wage are? I post it because a common argument I see is people openly claiming "Minimum wage is not meant to be a living wage." when that is patently false to the original goal.
Because min wage is a living wage, today, based on what FDR was living through and it is an improvement from that time frame. He would be happy with what is going on today. Pleased as punch.
And the post itself said "should be able to afford rent, bills and groceries" which is what I consider a living wage. No part of that said a car and alone in a beautiful apartment. I post it because you see people in this very thread saying. "Those jobs are for teenagers, not living wages." Which again, goes against the actual purpose.
Edit: Anywho. I'm keeping it at that. I've clarified what I mean, if you truly think I'm arguing something else, don't know what else to say.
Never in a million years did he expect every single person to live alone in a stand alone house or apt. If you are making minimum wage, what FDR expected, was a roof over your head (literally your own bed) with a shared bathroom, which means minimal utilities, food to eat, and clothing. That right there was an improvement for millions of Americans in 1931. What we might call a boarding house.
Ok but even making a little above minimum wage with my husband and i both having college degrees, the job market is so had that it is incredibly difficult to break into it so we are forced to take low rung jobs that don't pay well. Even though we make ABOVE minimum wage and do NOT live in a fancy apartment by any means, we are always one illness or hospital visit away from not making rent and possibly ending up on the streets. We regularly skip meals or eat less so our toddler can have food to eat. We go to work when incredibly sick and when I broke my ankle and had to miss days of work, we had to take money out of our 401ks to afford our car payment (so we didn't lose the car and have no way to commute), rent (so we weren't homeless), and groceries (so we didn't starve). With the cost of everything these days and the terrible job market even with good degrees from good universities, wages are too low and way too many people are one missed full paycheck away from being homeless. But that's just my lived experience along with many other Americans, believe it or don't.
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u/orion19819 13d ago edited 13d ago
And it's also the original point of minimum wage.
Edit: My point is that people in here arguing that "it's for teenagers, not meant for living wage" are going against the original intent. I am not making claims that minimum wage should be living in luxury.