Why We Must Raise Wages

I have had periods in my life when I was “successful”, when I made income of $60,000 plus in the early 90′s.

I am a smart guy, with a A type personality, and I used to work very hard.  I was successful but in a way also an asshole.

But then things fell apart.  Until my health left me, I worked the last 8 years of my working life in minimum wage, temp agency jobs.   I worked as much as I could.  I had to be humbled in my own life to gain empathy for these lower wage workers who I now view as my brothers and sisters.

The truth is that no one can live on what has passed for the minimum wage in the United States, at least for the last several decades.  This doesn’t mean that you die right away.  It means, if you are a minimum wage worker that your life is in a slow downward financial death spiral.  The vise tightens a little more every week.  Every week a little more in debt, a little more of your meager resources used, a couple more friendships and family relationships stressed or burned.

Hopelessness and desperation and depression.  Anxiety.

Workers making minimum wage (or close to it) are losing their lives to a downward poverty spiral.  The employers know this as do the politicians.   The truth is that we low wage workers are disposable.  When we wear out and fall in our footsteps, there are more of us to step over our bodies and keep marching……to our slave labor jobs! When something (someone let’s remember) is viewed as disposable there is no reason to maintain them!

We are the cannon fodder in capitalism’s war against us and against itself of course.  We are the infantry and the civilian collateral damage all at once.

So you reach a point where you realize that basically these folks just want you to work yourself to death, suffer for a few months before you die so these health care vampires can suck the last of the resources out of your family, and then just fuck off and die because you’ve been replaced.

That realization, that epiphany, that is the point when things change.  I reached that point myself a few years ago.  How about you?

People need to be paid more than their replacement value or its a death spiral economy that will collapse and its looking like its going to be soon.

have a peaceful day, Bill
—

A People’s Initiative for a

$12.00 An Hour Minimum Wage for Large Employers

http://fairwages.org

http://eurekafairwageact.wordpress.com

info@fairwages.org