For the First Time, Lower Wage Workers are Feeling the Recovering Economy

[Frodo]

If this keeps up, President Biden can legitimately wage an 'It's Morning in America' campaign in 2024, though something needs to be done about the housing situation:

For first time, average pay for supermarket and restaurant workers tops $15 an hour
$15 an hour is suddenly the rule, not the exception, for U.S. workers. It’s a major shift from pre-pandemic norms.

The U.S. labor market hit a new milestone recently: For the first time, average pay in restaurants and supermarkets climbed above $15 an hour. Wages have been rising rapidly as the economy reopens and businesses struggle to hire enough workers. Some of the biggest gains have gone to workers in some of the lowest-paying industries.

Overall, nearly 80 percent of U.S. workers now earn at least $15 an hour, up from 60 percent in 2014. Job sites and recruiting firms say many job seekers won’t even consider jobs that pay less than $15 anymore. For years, low-paid workers fought to make at least that much. Now it has effectively become the new baseline.

As competition for workers heats up, large employers are taking notice and bumping up starting pay. CVS said it will increase starting pay from $11 to $15 by next summer, joining other large employers like Target, Best Buy, Costco and Disney. When major employers raise their wages, it pushes smaller competitors in the area to follow suit, Brandeis and Princeton researchers recently found. The overall effect has been one of the fastest periods of rising wages since the early 1980s for rank-and-file workers and a clear spike from pre-pandemic trends. This higher pay is likely to be permanent as wages rarely fall once they move up.

Economists caution that a higher average wage is not the same as a $15 minimum wage. Half of workers in these industries are still making below $15 an hour. Nonetheless, rising pay is still a game-changer for millions of workers.

[pbrower2a]

Employers used to get away with savagely overworking and underpaying workers. The attitude "You need a job but I can easily find someone else" was the norm among employers who wanted the unemployed to compete with existing workers for the jobs that those employed already had.

That kept prices stable, but that also led to the situation in which people working full time qualified for welfare... it's better that people get paid on the job than that they must rely upon food aid, Section 9 housing, and the like -- right?

This may reflect that the jobs created in large numbers in the 1980's were heavily in retailing and food service, highly-competitive activities on price. Sometimes the "everyday low prices" have a hidden cost to pay.

[Badger]

Corporations pay massive bonuses and the like 2 top executives even when their corporation is performing like a mediocrity, Republicans say that's great they'll put the money towards greater investment in production.

Lower-wage workers finally start getting paid more, but still not enough that they can realistically look towards a starter home if they have a family or even a new car, Republicans whine and moan about how encroaching inflation will destroy the value of their mutual funds

[PSOL]

The pandemic has created the conditions where workers have stronger bargaining power than ever before since the 80s. The fact of the matter is that more workers have a choice to freely choose how they give their labour and hours to.

[dead0man]

good news!

<insert rant that about things I don't like and praise things I do like but hide it in a package that looks like good analysis of lower wage workers situation>

[GP270watch]

 There was always this disgusting sentiment in our society that if you worked for low wages it was what you deserved. I think the pandemic made our society re-evaluate how important grocery workers and other service jobs were. There is value in all work and I hope this sentiment can be maintained. The pandemic does give us an opportunity to do better coming out of it. I have expressed this idea in many threads because I really believe it. We had an underpaid workforce before the pandemic, a homeless and housing affordability crisis before the pandemic, and rapid wealth inequality before the pandemic.

 The pandemic exacerbated wealth inequality as the rich got a lot richer but the bulk of government stimulus has also gone to regular Americans, one of the first times that a bailout was not overwhelmingly top heavy. We've seen American families increase savings and the child tax credit is putting money in the hands of families with young children, where we normally give tax credits to the richest and government benefits to the older generations. Out of bad and depressing events forward thinking policies and governance can lead us to a better society.

[Utah Neolib]

great news

[Matty]

Just a reminder

A job that is brought back directly due to restrictions being lifted is NOT a “job created”

Under such logic, kristi noem is the greatest jobs governor in the country

Americans get that, which is why Biden won’t be able to sell this “recovery” like previous presidents were able to.

It’s just not comparable.

There’s a reason why Biden’s ratings on the economy are already trending into mediocre territory.

[Damocles]

Just a reminder

A job that is brought back directly due to restrictions being lifted is NOT a “job created”

Under such logic, kristi noem is the greatest jobs governor in the country

Americans get that, which is why Biden won’t be able to sell this “recovery” like previous presidents were able to.

It’s just not comparable.

There’s a reason why Biden’s ratings on the economy are already trending into mediocre territory.

Just a reminder

Creating more jobs does not mean that the jobs offer a good wage, consistent hours and scheduling, etc

If creating more jobs was the only barometer of success, someone working 45 hours a week (15 at each of 3 jobs) is somehow better than that same person working 40 hours at just one

The right loves to push that idea of “job creators” and “more jobs = better” even though no production exists without demand to sustain it

There’s a reason why Reaganites are wrong about virtually everything, their policies haven’t changed much since the McKinley days

[Saint Milei]

Yeah ok lmfao

[Matty]

Just a reminder

A job that is brought back directly due to restrictions being lifted is NOT a “job created”

Under such logic, kristi noem is the greatest jobs governor in the country

Americans get that, which is why Biden won’t be able to sell this “recovery” like previous presidents were able to.

It’s just not comparable.

There’s a reason why Biden’s ratings on the economy are already trending into mediocre territory.

Just a reminder

Creating more jobs does not mean that the jobs offer a good wage, consistent hours and scheduling, etc

If creating more jobs was the only barometer of success, someone working 45 hours a week (15 at each of 3 jobs) is somehow better than that same person working 40 hours at just one

The right loves to push that idea of “job creators” and “more jobs = better” even though no production exists without demand to sustain it

There’s a reason why Reaganites are wrong about virtually everything, their policies haven’t changed much since the McKinley days

President McKinley was a tariff supporter, a georgist, and a staunch believer in syndacalism

[Hope For A New Era]

Keep it going!

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

Yeah ok lmfao

Cope

[Progressive Pessimist]

That's somewhat encoruaging. Hopefully Biden and the Democrats can reap the benefits of this.

That shouldn't be the end-all, be-all though. Unions need to be restrengthened still.