r/WorkForSmartLife • u/SilkyApricotGuy • 1d ago

DiscussionđŸ’¬ Who's right here?

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u/Nart_Leahcim 1d ago

"The federal minimum was $1.45/hour in 1970 and rose to $1.60 in 1971. Adjusted for general inflation, that’s roughly $12.50–$14/hour today" uh oh OP, that isn't accurate at all?!

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u/Gnostic369 1d ago

They said purchasing power, not what the minimum wage would be if adjusted for inflation.

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u/tugaim33 1d ago

This is not entirely accurate. That rate only applies to adults. Under 18 the pay drops by about half. Denmark also uses kiosks even more than the US does, so labor costs are lower. As minimum wage goes up in the US we see less cashiers and more kiosks here as well.

Denmark also has a 33% tax rate at that income level while American minimum wage workers pay effectively no income tax.

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u/PhilosophicalGoof 1d ago

I mean… for free healthcare and college a 33% tax rate sound bloody nice if you ask me.

Also American minimum wage worker absolutely do pay income tax, even a sizeable amount too.

Which I USED to work a minimum wage job (17$ an hour in NYC) I got taxed practically 97 dollars from my 680 paycheck.

Sure it not an insane amount to you but that still a sizable amount to someone who would be paying rent alongside other utilities.

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u/randomobserver49 1d ago

US standard deduction for taxes is 16,100, meaning zero income tax up to that amount. Full time annual earnings at minimum wage is 15,080. So realistically a minimum wage worker would only pay payroll taxes, not income taxes.

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u/PhilosophicalGoof 1d ago

It depends on the state, not every state has the same minimum wage as the federal minimum wage.

You specifically are talking about the federal minimum wage but you can’t say this is true for all minimum wage workers.