Raising the minimum wage in NH?
 

So there are a few States that already pay above the Gov't standard minimum wage. With the fight going on to raise the minimum wage to over $10.00 to maybe even $15.00 per hour, what will the impact of any raise be to the local economy? Just wondering if anyone has been following this and what the thoughts are out there. Without getting political of course. Keep it to the local economy.
I can imagine that people will be a whole lot more selective about the people they hire, cut backs, increased payroll taxes etc. Add Obamacare into the mix and yikes!

How is calling it "the Obamacare fiasco" not political?

Because we are not talking about Obamacare. We are talking about the minimum wage. I just added Obamacare to the conversation to remind us of what the effects of BOTH will be on Businesses in the lakes region. I'll take out the word fiasco if it pleases everyone.

I think a relevant question to ask in parallel is are you willing to spend $5 to $7 for a Big Mac or $3 or $4 for a hamburger?

IMO. Cost of living will skyrocket along with it. The increase in minimum wage will become a wash, only taking down with it everyone who is now just getting by. In order to keep an even economy EVERYONE will need to an equivalent pay increase as the minimum increase. Again imo.

The "living wage" in Australia is over $16/hr.

A bottle of water is $4 at the 7/11.

A small coffee and egg mcmuffin is over $8.

A draft beer is pretty much $8 everywhere.

Do the math.

$8 for a draft beer! We used to pay a nickel on Long Island back in the good old days. I can't recall if there even was a minimum wage. Seems like I will be priced out of living. No more $4.00 meals for the wife and I at Wendys.

You are all right, it is all RELATIVE. Raise the price of things and cost go up so people earning $15 an hour won't be any better of than they are now earning 10. Anybody that thinks it doesn't HAVE to happen has no idea. I think it just sounds good for politicians to say they are raising the minimum wage. And speaking of Obamacare, I got an email from Anthem telling me that my company should consider changing our anniversary date (the date which our insurance renews, in case someone doesn't know) from 2014 to 2013 as they expect our insurance to go up from 26-38% in 2014. What ever in the world happened to Obama care is going to save money????

I know many businesses in the Lakes Region are already struggling, if this happens around here, it will hurt, at least until they adjust their prices. And the problem is, when they adjust their prices people will have sticker shock at least for a while and not buy.

The "living " wage in Australia is close to $20/ hour...but their cost of living is higher. However, their country does a better job with their money than we do.
Waitstaff also do not expect to get tips, because they make a decent wage.

The minimum wage was never intended to sustain a family...it is an entry level pay scale that allows business' to hire young or unskilled people while they learn some job skills.
I can give you an example of a young man that started with us at minimum wage who is now a manager with a family,two cars,is pre-approved and looking for his first home.
Work hard,learn new skills,show some initiative and you won't be getting minimum wage for long but to nearly double the rate would be hurtful to small business owners everywhere.
We would have to raise prices or increase the work load........unlike the government,we have to balance our books and show a profit.
Wish we could print new money when we need it,as they do,but....oops,sorry,can't get political.

What I cant understand is how people believe the government should make it illegal for someone to work?

I agree, however there are many companies that don't want, or don't care for their employees to succeed. They simply want cheap help. Many people do not have or were not privy to a good education so they are stuck in place. And then there are the people who think they are simply entitled to better pay without actually having to work for that pay or build better skills for it.

LR is right on both counts but that is the free market system that has always worked for us and I sure wish I had a better solution.
Just for example of what the effect would be,examine an average small business with 30 or 40 emplyees and 1 million in annual sales.A $7.50 increase in the minimum wage equals a $15,000 annual increase.If they have 10 people at that rate it would be an increase of $150,000 which exceeds the average profit of most small business' and would probably cause them to close down.

This I am sure is true. However, most companies tend to pay their help in accordance for what the customer wants...cheap stuff.

Wal Mart for example. People go there to buy cheap stuff. The stuff is cheap because Wal Mart buys it cheap, and they have to pay their help accordingly. Pay the help more, and the stuff you buy is more expensive.

Raise the minumum wage
 

and the cost of living will go up. And we are all back to square one!

Its a vicious circle that will go round and round.

Just like politics!

Exactly what I have said. It is all relative. If the cost of products and services go up, so does the price of the products. It IS a vicious circle, BH.

Wait until Next month
 

When the next phase of Obamacare comes into effect. Small businesses with just more than 50 employees will lay off folks to reduce the staff to less than 50.
We already seen folks hours cut to part time status to avoid paying for health insurance. We now see more folks without health insurance than before Obamacare. Another vicious circle created by our 'feel good' politicians!

And what was on GMA this morning. Wal-Mart employees going on strike today to demand more pay.

You know that Walmart's prices are not all that low anymore. Used to be an oil change cost about 15-dollars, but now costs about 31-dollars except for their Nascar specials that feature one brand for about 25-dollars. In the Wal-Mart food area, the Walmart prices can be higher than the Plymouth Hannaford prices, sometimes.

Sooner or later, could be that a Market Basket will come to Plymouth?

If you want lower prices for all sorts of items, suggest you visit the St Vincent De Paul www.stvdplaconia.com/ retail store in Laconia, next to McDonalds! All the people working there are older folks in their 60's, 70's and 80's who probably do not get paid anything because they are volunteers, plus it does not accept any credit or debit cards. It is not too unusual to see customer cars like Cadillac, Lexus, and late model Ford Taurus parked in the St Vincent's p-lot. So, u-know- what they say......the richer u get ....the cheaper u get!

St Vincent's has a food pantry next door that is open for two hours on two days/weeks for a total of four hours per week. I have no clue about the food pantry as I have never used it, except that I am aware that it is there.

You know, I will never understand that. If you want more pay, find a different/better job.

It is just another example of the "entitled mentality" they believe they are "entitled" to more without doing anything to EARN it.

Vermont has a minimum wage set at $8.60, while New Hampshire has the same $7.25 as the federal minimum wage.

'Wikipedia - minimum wage" has lots of information.

...or google this "Employment gap between richest, poorest, widest on record" by Hope Yen, Associated Press, Sept 16, 2013

You realize that 5 quarts of oil costs more than 15 dollars, right? The days of 89 cent quarts of oil went out with 89 cent gasoline!

1960 wages paid today at minimum wage.

"A federal minimum wage was first set in 1938. The graph shows nominal (blue diamonds) and real (red squares) minimum wage values. Nominal values range from $0.25/hr in 1938 to the current $7.25/hr. The graph adjusts these wages to 2012 dollars (red squares) to show the real value of the minimum wage. Calculated in real 2012 dollars, the 1968 minimum wage was the highest at $10.51. The real dollar minimum wage (red squares) falls during periods Congress does not raise the minimum wage to keep up with inflation. The minimum wage increased in three $0.70 increments--to $5.85 in July, 2007, $6.55 in July, 2008, and to $7.25 in July 2009.
The 2012 minimum wage is equal to what was paid in 1960."

LINK

Do minimum wages keep up with inflation or does inflation keep up with minimum wage???? Just a thought.

In a way minimum wage can cause inflation................... :cool:

And when prices get inflated, people need more to live, so wages need to go up again to keep up. Seems to me it is a vicious circle.

Apples and oranges.



The 2012 minimum wage is equal to what was paid in 1960

No, I disagree. It has nothing to do with apples and oranges. When wages go up prices go up.

The minimum wage for tipped workers in New Hampshsire is $3.26 an hour.


LINK

I used to think that the whole tipping thing was crazy but it works well for both parties.

For the server they can earn more if they work harder, and for a server working harder means giving the patron a better dining experience. Plus their extra hard work pay is essentially untaxed.

For the patron it means better service. Travel in Europe, the worst chain pub here has better service than all but fine dining there. Yes there five star places treat you like a king but the run of the mill restaurants have horrible service.

Janet Yellen, newly nominated chair of the www.federalreserve.gov when looking to hire a babysitter for their son, back in the early 1980's, chose to offer higher pay thinking that a babysitter happy with the higher pay would do a better job, and she says her theory was correct ...... way-to-go Janet! ..... u know that after she gets confirmed .... she serves for maybe ten years or so!

......
Meanwhile, the Massachusetts legislature is currently considering raising their state rate up to ten dollars/hour over the next two years or so.

And in 2011, the New Hampshire legislature, under a Republican majority eliminated any New Hampshire minimum wage which had been 7.85 or so, rescinding it over Gov John Lynch's veto, so the NH rate went from 7.85 down to the federal rate of 7.35, or something like that.

So, it just goes to show; under the Republicans, the local State of NH owned roads in Meredith like one-mile long Barnard Ridge Rd and the six-mile long Meredith Neck Rd are left to fall all apart with crumbly old asphalt and permanent frost heaves and the wage rate goes down which probably makes some people all happy .... is this your NH republican road you want to be driving ... especially if you is driving a motorcycle!

Yes I'd rather have a few bumps in the road and sound fiscal policy than mountains of debt and a union paved road that costs us all a fortune, plus interest.

Or better yet want that road paved, let's pay for that with a EBT card ;)

.... a republican road?
 

I don't know the how or the why for how or why the State of New Hampshire is the owner of one mile long Barnard Ridge Rd, or six mile long Meredith Neck Rd as opposed to the Town of Meredith owning them, but the state does in fact own these two roads. Probably, the Town of Meredith should own these two roads and they would be in much, much better shape; just take a look-see at nearby Pleasant St which is owned by the Town of Meredith.

They are called unnumbered state roads and are down at the bottom of the list for getting maintenance so, as a result of neglect, the pavement has enough crumbly asphalt, cracks, bulges, permanent frost heaves, waves, and missing asphalt that the town snowplows cannot lower their blades closer than about 5" to the pavement because it is simply too rough and the blade will tear up the asphalt.

You can call it what you want about sound fiscal policy and ebt cards but the real reason is because the Republican dominated (13-11) NH Senate has stopped the needed money from going to the NH Dept of Transportation so's I think it's pretty accurate to call it a republican road!

At least the "Republican Road" doesn't lead you to the "Democrat Cliff" :laugh: