Soreth @Soreth@awoo.space

The minimum wage in the US in the 1950s was $0.75/hr but here's the thing: based on what I've been reading almost no one got paid that. Only waitresses (yeah, waitresses got minimum wage; wild, no?). Most blue collar jobs started at $1/hr for part time and even the stuff we consider "Jobs for teens" started above minimum.

Grocery clerks and food prep got around $1.50 - $1.80.

The base inflation factor for the time span of 1950 - 2021 is about 10.5x. So that's roughly $17 - $20/hr in 2021 bucks.

"But wait, if the minimum was $0.75 and the inflation factor is around 10x, doesn't that mean our minimum now of $7.25 is close fine?" you may ask. No. I don't think so. Keep in mind almost no industry in the 1950s actually paid minimum as a standard, compared to now where it's pretty prevalent. A lot more mom & pop shops in the 1950s with some semblance of care for their employees, as opposed to megacorps setting compensation scales at the top.

In addition to that, while the inflation factor is 10.5x, real estate prices have increased by almost 25x (this flexes depending on where you look, of course). So the biggest factor in one's cost of living (rent, mortgage, etc) has increased more than twice that of inflation.

So if you're basing minimum wage purely on inflation from the last minimum wage, sure, $7.25 is close to right (but still too low). If you're looking at buying power in the economy and quality of life, we need close to $15 to come close; I'd even say it's not enough. We need $18.

By literally every factor available, the minimum needs to go up. This is absolutely indisputable. Depending on which factor you use, it needs to go up either 10% or 125%. I lean very far into the latter end of that scale.

In truth, we need to deflate the real estate market. In an ideal world I'd say increase the minimum to $15, but also do something about our housing crisis like tax the value of any not-resided home at 100% of its value.

Harsh? Hell yeah it is, but I'm tired of this.