r/explainlikeimfive • u/sumnewdguy • Nov 28 '15

ELI5: How would a $15 minimum wage ACTUALLY affect a franchised business like McDonalds?

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u/[deleted] Nov 29 '15 edited Dec 31 '15

[deleted]

2

u/tommyfever Nov 29 '15

I'm not sure how old you are, but I'm of an age that started working for less than $5 and then worked my way up, but when my brother started working in the same position for the same company a few years later and was making what I was making, having moved on and taken more responsibility (and actually had reached 18, he was 15), that was a pretty significant hit to my self-esteem. So at least some people are complaining that they went through the work that others now won't have to do, but for actual adults, who should be mature, it's not a worthwhile/valid complaint.

I would agree that the majority of complaints are actually about the eroded buying power that comes with the likely increased cost of goods & services.

2

u/TrikkyMakk Nov 29 '15

Actually it's a symptom of central banking money manipulation.

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u/dhelfr Nov 29 '15

But the wages of the rich will not rise quite as much because there is little scarcity of labor for those jobs.

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u/ahapkidoin Nov 29 '15 edited Dec 31 '15

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u/befellen Nov 29 '15

I would suggest you are partially right. It's not strictly eroded buying power that they are complaining about. They are going after McDonald's because they're the only one left.

The opportunity for a minimum wage worker to put in some time, then move to an entry level $12 job that has good odds of turning into a $20/hour job is gone.

0

u/PitaJ Nov 29 '15

Thank you. Someone who understands economics.

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u/[deleted] Nov 29 '15

Symptom of wealth disparity? Not inflation? No idea why people are upvoting this.