Mimimum Wage jobs--worse than 80s

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When my parents worked minimum wage jobs in the 80's they made up to $300 per week, even at $4 per hour. Now, it's $8 an hour but the most anyone wants to give is about 10 hours a week to save company money.

So, how are people ever supposed to get anywhere?

By being born into the wealthy or upper middle class...

..or by finding a different job.

Improving yourself, your knowledge, your skills etc and then finding a better paying job w/ more hours.

And of course by living below your means as your means increase, so that when you do earn more money you're saving as much of the excess as you can after your basic needs are met.

I say this as it's been my experience. Improved myself, got better paying job(s), pay for what I Need & save/invest almost all of the rest. I was broke a couple years ago. Now I'm in the black and continuing to stack cash as fast as I can even though I do not earn a lot of money - although it's better than just one or two shifts a week at minimum wage.

THIS^

It is unreasonable to expect employers to employ people in high-paying jobs if those people don't have the skills and education to actually do those jobs. It is equally unreasonable to expect to be paid more than minimum wage to fill a position that requires few skills and little training.

With hundreds (if not thousands) of unskilled people applying for minimum-wage jobs, the advantage goes to the employers. If an employee doesn't work out, an employer can literally hire the next person through the door, offer the same wage, and hire that person on the spot.

People run businesses to make profit, not to provide jobs.

There is one way where young college age persons have it harder today than in the 80s and 90s and that is with college costs. They have skyrocketed because the schools, through the student loan program, are insulated from the consequences of their increases as well as from the students not paying when they cannot find a job after they get a degree (or don't).

Now I know older people who say that without student loans, they would not have gone to college but that was before hyperinflation took over college costs. I did some pretty radical things in the 00 decade to get my student loans paid off and that is what it takes these days. I think students today will have it harder.

The solution would be to end the student loan program. Those at the lower rung of society will have to wait 1 -2 years before the college cost bubble pops completely before college becomes affordable again but that is a better price than the current situation. We could also use the funds currently being put aside for student loans to pay for vocational education at the high school level or to fund Obama's plan for free community college.

In the meantime, the best bet for anyone at minimum wage is to find a way to increase their skills so that they are in demand by employers. If you really want it and are willing to sacrifice, you can still get ahead even today.

That's kind of my thinking, too. My mother (and some of our relatives and her friends) complain about the minimum wage. NOW, I do think it's disgusting that a CEO makes millions a year while the front line workers are making bupkiss and relying on government programs for their benefits.

But, I didn't like it, so I didn't keep doing it.
I lived in a podunk town with limited job opportunities, almost all minimum wage. I showed up on time and followed all the rules and was honest (not like I couldn't not be lol) and only made min wage for three months. Thereafter, any job I took that typically paid minimum wage, I would ask for more, and I would get it. I'm not saying all employers would say yes, I'm just saying I wouldn't work for the ones that said no.
Unfortunately, if I wanted to make more money, I had to leave my podunk town and work in the city. First I took the train in (yay public transit, even if it took three times as long as driving would have), then I moved to the city because I hated wasting all that time.

I've gotten pretty mad at my mom because she was sacked and looking for work, and I told her I'd get her a job in the housekeeping department of the hospital I worked at (highest turnover of any department), then, after a year, she could've met folks in other departments and transferred to something better.
But, she was offended I suggested housekeeping, and she didn't want to work in the city.
Well, hello. If you'd rather be unemployed for three years instead of working in a housekeeping job (which paid more than min wage AND had benefits) and taking a train or driving in traffic... well, sorry, but, she's gotten what she deserves... you put forth the absolute minimum, you deserve the absolute minimum in return.

Sorry, my disdain for my mom and the circle I had to grow up around part-time shouldn't reflect on those who don't live close enough to a big city to get a job... I am obviously too close to the bad decisions of those in my family who would rather party and get hungover and call off work then wail about how unfair it all is.

The #1 factor for success, when controlling for all other factors like race and gender and parental income is... the people you hang out with. Fill your social circles with those better than you (I originally found mine through church, then professional user groups). They have their stuff together, can give you good advice, and won't be a drain on you.

I agree with what the others have said well... live far below your means, so you can build the capital to get to the next rung on the ladder.
And don't get me started on education... yes, so far slanted toward those with financial resources already.
If you're estranged from your parents, student loans are out of your reach until you're 22 (maybe it's even up to 25 now), so the deck is stacked against you further.

Sorry for the wall of text.
Job searching blows. Being uneducated blows. Being broke blows.
But, don't get stuck in a rut just doing what everyone around you is doing.
This year, I will pay more in taxes than all three of my parents even earned put together. It was a long, tiring road that I thought would kill more or drive me mad a few times, but, ones my kids won't have to walk down, thanks to some good decisions on my part when I was younger.