Why Is There a Minimum Wage?

PBS Member Stations rely on viewers like you. To support your local station, go to to.pbs.org/DonateORIG
↓ More info and sources below ↓
Check out Two Cents! / twocentspbs
The Minimum Wage is a wildly important and contentious aspect of modern economic life. But whether you believe it needs to go up or be eliminated altogether there’s an important question to ask, why does it exist at all?
Written and Hosted By: Danielle Bainbridge
Graphics By: Noelle Smith
Edited By: Linda Huang and Mike Petrow
Fact Check: Sarah Edwards
Produced By: Kornhaber Brown (www.kornhaberbrown.com)
Works Cited:
poverty.ucdavis.edu/faq/what-...
money.cnn.com/interactive/eco...
bebusinessed.com/history/hist...
www.dol.gov/general/aboutdol/...
abcnews.go.com/News/history-u...
minimum-wage.procon.org/view....
www.law.cornell.edu/wex/minim...
Minimum Wages by David Neumark and William L. Wascher
www.history.com/news/the-stri...
www.britannica.com/topic/Nati...
www.dol.gov/whd/flsa/
www.nypl.org/blog/2012/05/25/...
money.cnn.com/interactive/eco...
www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/...
www.smithsonianmag.com/histor...
www.thirteen.org/wnet/jimcrow...
www.thirteen.org/wnet/jimcrow...
www.politico.com/story/2009/0...
www.dol.gov/whd/minwage/ameri...
www.dol.gov/general/topic/wag...
www.history.com/topics/cesar-...
www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/hi...
money.cnn.com/2017/12/29/news...
money.cnn.com/2014/04/23/smal...

[@TheFINNHERO]

This Channel Is Far Underrated

[@emeken]

I could not agree more, they've been producing the same high quality content since they had 1000 subscribers too

[@kernelpanick636]

Suggestion: The history of Middle Names and where they came from. My girlfriend and I have been arguing about this for days and cant seem to find enough information :)

[@OblongPolkaDots]

I second this suggestion. @originofeverything

[@googlselzmiyinfo9040]

Good one! I've been wondering what the "H" in Jesus H. Christ stands for

[@birdsdaword]

i don't have a middle name.

[@nineball039]

I suspect many are family names - aunts, uncles, great grandparents etc.

[@pbsorigins]

I have multiple middle names....so I may be personally motivated to get to the bottom of this question!

[@kinglee334]

I think we are missing a big part of this story. I think they should cover the history of tipping. Which kind of ties into this subject.

[@brothacaim]

tied with salvery,i think

[@lylyluvda916]

So Im a big history nerd and this is probably my favorite channel atm. Keep it up!

[@ilmanil]

lies..... minimum wage was done protect the organized workers from competition

[@ZestyCrab]

Suggestion: Why do we have the Electoral College?

[@ellehopkins4326]

We have an electoral college because if we decided the presidency on the popular vote, small sections of the country would be the ones to determine the entire state of the country. It sucks sometimes when the popular vote doesn't win, but it wouldn't be right either if the majority of the population in larger cities (NY &CA) decided the fate of the entire country.

[@ZestyCrab]

Nah. The Electoral college is designed to give rural states more sway. THEY are the small sections of the country that have a bigger say than the rest. A voter in Wyoming is worth 4 Californian votes, for instance. I can google this all day erry day, but I was looking for a video from this channel on it.

[@ZestyCrab]

Just because you have more land around you, doesn't mean your vote should count for more.

[@ShaudaySmith]

I get the premise of an Electoral College... it's still weird because it still looks at popular votes to decide who to give it's electoral votes. So... popular votes still matter, in a way... but not really, if you live in a state whose turnout is overwhelmingly one way. Like how certain states are strongly for one political affiliation, be it Democratic or Republican, that state will most assuredly give all its votes that way... regardless if YOUR personal vote was for the other person. So your vote doesn't matter there.. sad, hard truth. The "majority wins all the votes" style only seems to really work in those "battleground" states..

[@tarawrr20]

Zesty Crab Legs it isn’t based on land, it is based on population

[@lizrose1679]

My city just raised minimum wage to $15/hr now

[@lizrose1679]

Ben. Valinski oh wow it’s probably due to corruption caused by first world countries exploiting developing countries from cheap labour

[@nic12344]

Enjoy the job losses and the prices raise!

[@lizrose1679]

Nicholas R.M. Thanks!

[@therealnoodles7638]

@@nic12344 haven't heard that bullshit conservative rhetoric in my city which increased $15 min wage.

[@sebastianr1204]

Ben. Valinski: It is not existing in Austria

[@geekedup1415]

Can you do a video on the history of the Black Panthers and Chicano Movement since you brought up California's farmworker strike and Ceaser Chavez plus its National Hispanic Heritage Month Please!!!

[@pbsorigins]

This is a great one! Although we film really far out from the release dates so if it was covered it wouldn't go up by the end of the month. BUT there's no time limit on important info so I'll keep this one tucked away as we brainstorm new fan picks :)

[@brianpso]

Wow I didn't expect this so soon! Thanks a lot for making this episode, and for the great work done on it!

[@pbsorigins]

Thanks for the suggestion! I loved covering it with the folks over at Two Cents, everyone should check them out if you're looking for more episodes about personal finance/history!

[@DerrickDurden]

0:58 Should really add prison labourers to that list of minimum wage excludies.

[@pbsorigins]

This is a fair point. Thanks for adding and commenting!

[@Aliyaji4424]

Origin Of Everything I would also add workers with disabilities.

[@rainyrainold]

Slavery is completely legal in the United States as long as the slaves have been convicted of a crime.

[@dostthouevenlogicbrethren1739]

@@rainyrainold Then it's not slavery dipshit.

[@jjtiojohn12]

Suggestion: can you do the origins of the war on drugs?

[@ellehopkins4326]

Nixon coined the term and made it popular.

[@therealnoodles7638]

It was supposed to protect the workers. Back in the day, the employer had more bargaining power than the workers. It was a time of great innovation and most wealth were created by the capital owners and employers. Thus they had more bargaining power and contracts tended to be one sided. It was a solution to exploitation and more bargaining power for the workers.

[@Helmic]

That's still true today, of course, and the weakening and demonization of American unions is a direct threat to minimum wages throughout the country.

[@libertyfive7241]

it was implemented during the Great Depression in the late 1930s at 25 cents an hour to providing a living wage and to prevent exploitation

[@libertyfive7241]

@@Helmic : I support the unions who make it their business to help get a better deal for workers . but they should butt out pushing Socialism and Marxism . The Democrats are not for the worker either .Hillary is good friends with the Walton family . Did she try to help the workers when she was on the Wal Mart company board from 1986-03 and the unions were fighting for a better deal for the workers .Hillary remained silent . Hypocrite

[@fredandhiroko]

Danielle totally rocks!

[@drewforchic9083]

EVEN IF WE AIN'T GOT HATS OR BADGES WE"RE A UNION JUST BY SAYIN SOOOOOO AND THE WORLD WILL KNOW! God I love Newsies!.

[@TragoudistrosMPH]

I really like the international portion for perspective. Hearing of the president flooding the legislature is interesting. So much detail, it's appreciated.

[@JV947]

This is excellent, like every other video in the channel.

[@Ariel-oz2ty]

I love all the videos. Can you do the history of anime?!

[@celtgunn9775]

Can you do some episodes of the history of farming in the midwest? We grow wheat, peas,some years canola, thinking about corn next year, grass hay, alfalfa & black angus. Here in SW North Dakota. The family has been here for many years. The Original home is still on the property. 😊

[@tovahgoldfine5146]

I would love to see a video on the origin of paint/pigment in art

[@katiewade6238]

OOE: continues talking about worker strikes and other interesting stuff My dumbass theater-nerd brain: N E W S I E S

[@deshaunbrandford1615]

Suggestion: The history of Language Translation. I have always wondered how the idea of translating one word into various languages began.

[@desean3402]

Why didn’t I hear about this channel when I was teaching high school? 🤦🏿‍♂️

[@Proclaimfame]

Send this to Jeff Bezos

[@bntagkas]

and he'll laugh his ass out...didnt you get it? all good things only happen after popular strugle.

[@mikepritchard8600]

Amazon I heard some employees pee in bottles so they can reach the quote

[@dburgessnotburger]

I have a question in regards to the Newsboy strike of 1899. I can see that these boys were heralded for objecting to the increased price of papers, and it is understandable that this would have affected their earnings. But then, people are fine with the price of labor going up (via minimum wage rises)? In summary, if the increased price of a paper makes it harder for that paper to be sold, then doesn't a higher/ minimum wage make it harder for people to get/ stay employed? Just wondering. Thank you. Good video

[@chhavibhatt5848]

Such a well-researched video. The host is so energetic, I love it!

[@SuperGreatSphinx]

Modern minimum wage laws trace their origin to the Ordinance of Labourers (1349), which was a decree by King Edward III that set a maximum wage for laborers in medieval England. King Edward III, who was a wealthy landowner, was dependent, like his lords, on serfs to work the land. In the autumn of 1348, the Black Plague reached England and decimated the population. The severe shortage of labor caused wages to soar and encouraged King Edward III to set a wage ceiling. Subsequent amendments to the ordinance, such as the Statute of Labourers (1351), increased the penalties for paying a wage above the set rates. While the laws governing wages initially set a ceiling on compensation, they were eventually used to set a living wage. An amendment to the Statute of Labourers in 1389 effectively fixed wages to the price of food. As time passed, the Justice of the Peace, who was charged with setting the maximum wage, also began to set formal minimum wages. The practice was eventually formalized with the passage of the Act Fixing a Minimum Wage in 1604 by King James I for workers in the textile industry. By the early 19th century, the Statutes of Labourers was repealed as the increasingly capitalistic United Kingdom embraced laissez-faire policies which disfavored regulations of wages (whether upper or lower limits). The subsequent 19th century saw significant labor unrest affect many industrial nations. As trade unions were decriminalized during the century, attempts to control wages through collective agreement were made. It was not until the 1890s that the first modern legislative attempts to regulate minimum wages were seen in New Zealand and Australia. The movement for a minimum wage was initially focused on stopping sweatshop labor and controlling the proliferation of sweatshops in manufacturing industries. The sweatshops employed large numbers of women and young workers, paying them what were considered to be substandard wages. The sweatshop owners were thought to have unfair bargaining power over their employees, and a minimum wage was proposed as a means to make them pay fairly. Over time, the focus changed to helping people, especially families, become more self-sufficient. In the United States, the late 19th-century ideas for favoring a minimum wage also coincided with the eugenics movement. As a consequence, some economists at the time, including Royal Meeker and Henry Rogers Seager, argued for the adoption of a minimum wage not only to support the worker, but to support their desired semi- and skilled laborers while forcing the undesired workers (including the idle, immigrants, women, racial minorities, and the disabled) out of the labor market. The result, over the longer term, would be to limit the nondesired workers' ability to earn money and have families, and thereby, remove them from the economists' ideal society.

[@AddyanselBueso]

Hi! Most of the times we question our cultural differences or embrace them, with no real reason as to why we do so. My real wonder is why we develop this need to have imaginary lines that define the boundaries of our countries? I mean we aknowledge nations but that is more cultural, while boundaries is... political? Why?

[@ariaalexandria3324]

Control. Whoever had the most land and the most fertile soil had the most control and power. Some people wanted to do bad stuff with this power, and some wanted it because they intended to do genuine good. There wasn't going to be any sharing of land.

[@DSQueenie]

“As we go marching marching...”

[@TheTwick]

Another great one. Never stop them coming. Oh, and FIRST one to actually say something.

[@Mikey-fi8bb]

thanks for the super great videos

[@misspinkpunkykat]

I knew someone who worked in a sheltered workshop for adults with developmental disabilities. They would do things no one else wanted to do such as put cardboard boxes together and get a penny for every box. Apparently, someone caught on and made the place give everyone minimum wage.

[@leabelton3569]

Would be awesome to see Origin of Everything: Unions

[@zlaynie]

REQUESTS: - The Gregorian calendar - Relationship between income and inflation rates. - Have the min wage laws helped or hurt lower tax bracket - Hire me to do research on all your topics!

[@KathleenAnlage]

What were the earliest hurricane and tornado early warning systems / methods m

[@pbsorigins]

Hmmmmm I always wanted to figure out the naming system for hurricanes too...I'll keep this in mind!

[@trevorbailey2195]

Can you do the lil uzi dance just one time for the culture at the end of one of your videos lol 😂 It would truly make my Day 🔥

[@mrbriansmallcasting]

The archive photo at about 05:15 seems to feature... like... Kathy Lee Gifford or maybe Shari Lewis in the foreground picketing... am I wrong?

[@mrbriansmallcasting]

But also: I love this channel.

[@grandmabertha217]

Hi in new love the vids so far

[@Dennis-nc3vw]

Good question, I live in Austin Texas where the minimum wage is $7.25 and even Taco Bell is paying $15.50. This "race to the bottom" stuff is nonsense. As long as there is competition, which is already mandated by law, there needn't be a minimum wage.

[@DavidLindes]

Related to the comment from "Googl Selzmiyinfo", I have a question relating to this topic: what impact, if any, does minimum wage have on inflation? As someone who just (out of curiosity rather than intent to buy) looked at some real estate prices in Palo Alto, California, that placard you show of 1938 cost of living seems... rather quaint. And makes me think that a Palo Altan would need a median income of about $1-2M/year to be in line with the housing:salary ratio there listed. Which... I presume is pretty far from the reality, even if there are a lot of comparatively high salaries there. But is that related to minimum wage? And/or to couch it in a form that fits the focus of your channel: what's the origin of inflation?

[@johnbowen8917]

4:07 3 o clock center. Is that Cathy Giffords? You didn't notice that someone photoshopped themselves into the picture.? lol

[@Grimonite]

Can you do a video on Subminimum wage?

[@abramthiessen8749]

As I learn economics, I learn why minimum wages are a bit contentious. Minimum wages are price floors like the ones we have in parts of Canada for beer and milk. In the case of minimum wages and milk, they are to protect certain groups, and for beer, they are allegedly to discourage people from buying alcohol. But any price floor works both ways, they ensure that the people selling the labour, milk and beer have a consistent income, and on the other, it lowers the number of people and businesses willing to buy labour, milk and beer shrinking the overall market. In the case of minimum wages, it is important to have this protection because there is almost always a surplus of labour and fewer employers than workers (an oligopsony). Which gives the employers much more power than workers to determine wages. This is compounded by a culture of workers hiding their wages from each other. So minimum wages are good to limit certain exploitative practices. But the minimum wages do inevitably shrink the market for unskilled and low-value labour and these two effects must be balanced. Raising minimum wage to 25$/h will probably result in far fewer hires and larger unemployment with a small number of very happy unskilled workers such as teenagers as employers rush to automate tasks previously reserved for the now costly human workers. And the whole debate to some degree is a debate as to where the optimum is between these two effects. Alternatives to increasing minimum wages include offering negative income tax to the lowest earning brackets which do not change incentives on employers to hire but, drain public coffers. A different idea is a basic income which pays everyone a set amount which de-incentivizes workers to sell their labour but covers everyone employed or not.

[@HunterHogan]

"Raising minimum wage to 25$/h will PROBABLY..." (emphasis added). Why say probably if there is evidence? If there is no evidence, then why make the claim? The economic academy's refusal to seek evidence and reject logical fallacies is why the economic academy must be expelled from the school of philosophy. Just as important: the legal academy is not in the school of philosophy and does not want to be in the school of philosophy. Notwithstanding the heretical and class-warfare-motivated infusion of misconstrued economics into law by Richard Posner, Guido Calabresi, Richard Epstein, and others, economics does not describe what law is and it does not explain what law ought to be. Many of the things you wrote are true statements. And your description of contemporary economics would warrant an A+ in a university course. My problem is not with you: it's with the heartless people who use the con-game of contemporary economics to justify oppression. Whenever you read an economic idea that claims to be The Truth, think of the following: Q: How many economists does it take to screw in a lightbulb? A: First, assume you have a functional light bulb. If whatever you are reading is similar to that joke, then the idea is a joke.

[@abramthiessen8749]

I chose $25 because it is beyond what most people suggest. There is a lot of evidence that small increases to the minimum wage have no significant effect on change overall employment, GDP, or average income. With minimal evidence that it would disproportionately affect teenage employment. It does however significantly increase the average income of the poorest. Which is a good thing unless you are truly heartless, and probably very rich. But there is good reason to suggest that very large jumps in the minimum wage would have negative side effects mostly using data from other kinds of price floors. But at what point would they be completely offset by the positives? No one knows.

[@ariaalexandria3324]

We already have the equivalent of a negative income tax, and it's called social services. Big companies rely on this to pass the obligation of payment to taxpayers who can't get tax rates down to zero the way big companies can. I suggest you make an effort to really learn economics, and from a source other than Fox News. When workers have actual income, something happens. Do you know what that is? They BUY STUFF, which creates demand for the goods that those companies make. When employees are starved, they don't have money to buy goods, which decreases demand, which decreases the need for workers, which lowers available jobs and wages and results in many full-time jobs getting split into two or three part-time jobs (much of the job-growth number is part-time jobs that were split from full time positions). The wealthy in charge don't care, just like how they don't care that a Medicare-for-all system would SAVE money over what's being spent now AND cover ALL people. It's not about saving money. It's about making money through control by sucking it out of us. It's about control.

[@rpcruz]

Abram, I suggest you avoid having such complicated debates in youtube. People here don't have a clue about economics. They will just insult you if you mention any negative side-effects of minimum wage. Let's raise the minimum wage to $1,000 per hour!

[@rpcruz]

"They BUY STUFF, which creates demand for the goods that those companies make." If you increase demand without increasing supply, you just raise prices. Quantity consumed will be the same. Your point would only make sense in the context of a recession where supply is below economy's capacity.

[@Bruza920]

It's disappointing that this video does not mention how minimum wage laws actually were utilized to ensure that African-Americans were priced out of the market, just as was the case in British Columbia against the Japanese. So much for a neutral, objective analysis of minimum wage.

[@ionz75]

Take note fellow Americans, we're about to have to fight this one all over again...

[@zlaynie]

You got that right!!! #newfdr

[@eve36368]

It helps makes it so that wage isn't giving in "script". Which is like a gift card you can use at the only store available. And you can easily fall into debt with this.

[@New_Wave_Nancy]

And the only store available was owned by the company, so your wages were just funneled right back to them.

[@vojtasks]

I think that minimum wage was implemented in America not to secure basic income for workers, but rather to prevent cheap labor force to compete with natives. Or perhaps it was in South Africa. Because that's really effective way how to get rid of cheap competition in labour market.

[@zakwanaiman2487]

3:31 By order of the Peaky fookin Blinders

[@sammott8557]

The 1938 cost of living shown at 0:14 gives greater opportunities than the wages today. I mean, house prices on average are 100,000 and up (I know its a wide range, but)-- I don't make anywhere near 50,000. Yet in 1938, a new house cost about the same as 2 years of an average income. Today's average income would take more years to buy a new house. My income would buy an old house after 4 years of working and a new house after many more years of working.

[@sophiagrey4658]

Do I hear an alarm at 0:44? Weird! Also bizarre that this channel/ video has so few comments.... y'all deleting stuff? lol

[@fennecfoxfanatic]

Wait, how does the minimum wage help if many of us are still living bellow the poverty line?

[@googlselzmiyinfo9040]

Fennecfoxfanatic a stagnant minimum wage coupled with steady inflation

[@oldaccount9190]

minimal wage is a fancy term for softcore slavery lets be honest

[@clement2780]

three times rent costs divided by 400 hrs per month

[@nightryder21]

How did the actual reason the minimum wage was actually passed go ignored. Which was to encourage more employment by cutting hours and raising wages to offset the difference. Check out Planet Money on the reason the minimum wage was finally passed.

[@qweasdzxc390]

I love two cents!!

[@clement2780]

should be a monthly minimum wage since gig workers might make a few thousand one month and nothing for a few months

[@monkey-trial...6578]

When you tack a piece of legislation along with other laws that are guaranteed pretty much to get passed on the day day it's called a 'rider'

[@shugadaddy4841]

I love the Newsies!

[@codiserville593]

Wow, I had no idea that the newsboys were actually entrepreneurs

[@cheydinal5401]

Isn't it weird that in the US, "taking things lying down" or "bend over" isn't even considered a nasty expression?

[@lorenandloisstevenson3858]

At 4:07 is that J Lo? On the right holding the only sign that leaning? Time travel? Just kidding it does look like her on my t.v.

[@LuneNyx98]

Suggestion: Who was really first person/people to discovered South America. I’m pretty sure there natives living in South America before the Spanish came and before Chirstobal Colon

[@marlonmoncrieffe0728]

Pretty sure? There WERE indigenous peoples living in the Americas for tens of thousands of year before Columbus or even the Vikings.

[@LuneNyx98]

How did they get there though?

[@marlonmoncrieffe0728]

@@LuneNyx98 (...This is the quality of our education...?) Anyway, there was a land bridge across the Bering Straight that connected Siberia to the Americas that the first Americans crossed following wooly mammoth herds.

[@Shelly-mj4yp]

That is one big talking 🐻

[@ConEnigma]

Let me add, it was not to support a family. It was for a single person.

[@billygr7628]

Forward 2022 minimum wage sucks, inflation skyrocketing faster than wages. Especially 8n California.

[@GavinPutland]

What's better for workers than a higher minimum wage? A tax on vacant land and unoccupied premises. A higher minimum wage discourages hiring. But a vacancy tax on residential property makes the owners get residential tenants (and set the rents within reach of wages), while a vacancy tax on commercial property makes the owners get business tenants, who in turn will need workers, leading to higher *market* wages and more stable jobs. What's better for business than a lower minimum wage? A tax on vacant land and unoccupied premises! A lower minimum wage cuts the spending power of prospective customers, and makes it harder for prospective employees to afford housing within a manageable distance of your business. But a vacancy tax on nearby residential property keeps it populated with prospective customers and workers, while a vacancy tax on nearby commercial property keeps it populated with complementary businesses that will attract foot traffic to *your* business. Notice that a vacant-property tax is meant to be AVOIDED. It's not meant to be paid. Moreover, avoidance of it would generate economic activity, expanding the bases of other taxes and allowing their rates to be cut, so that both workers and businesses would pay LESS tax!

[@rainyrainold]

Those poor little news boys.

[@xxxveneno]

Before the minimum wage the Black American unemployment was equal or sometime better those of white, after it went up. Corporations are ok with raising the minimum wage because mom and pop shops can't afford to pay their employess..

[@scotttaylor5596]

You forgot trying to price minority labor out of the job market.

[@Dayglodaydreams]

This is great. We don't get enough of this in schools. Even schools with a progressive-leaning student body.

[@gearhead-do1xh]

Simple, pay a living wage, include all taxes and fees in the price displayed like in Europe and Asia =No Stickershock👍. Besides tipping is rooted from the days of slavery & POS terminals tip% are calculated on your after tax bill (instead of pre-tax which is just wrong ) 💳💵💵🇨🇦🇺🇸🌎

[@clement2780]

why on earth is tipped subminimum wage unique to usa

[@blessethishe]

This my 3rd time watching your content. And I love it. So the type of woman I would marry, excuse me. So my question is this. How do they even come up with minimum wage. Why cant people survive the cost of living just off one job and be paid a wage that covers that expense. For example California. Let's say cost of living for a single person median is 75k. But the minimum wage is 15$. Suppose you work 8 hours each day for 5 days out a week and multiply that times 4 weeks equaling a month and times 12 months. That means you only could make 35k per year putting you 30k below what is needed to live and support your self with a 75k median for a single person. The minimum wage thing is just modern day slavery. Its basically cheap labor. It's not enough to support yourself and live decent and these greedy people know that. Which is why the low paying jobs are targeted at specific groups of people although some people in those groups have degrees they still cant get a decent job because an employer said not hire you and is left with low paying job. Think its because they not educated or experience enough or is this modern day slavery and these people are on code who to target leaving folks with no other choice but to work low paying jobs. Terrible little people humans are.

[@cuongvitruong]

I'm not a protestor type at all, I'm sorry, I was illegally used to protest for the minimum wage in the USA since the year 1999. Please leave me alone and stop illegally using me to protest. You better off hiring someone else who actually have a desire and passion to protest for you. Thank you in advance.

[@cheydinal5401]

I'm a progressive, but FDR's way of dealing with the Supreme Court is very undemocratic

[@socraticproblem86]

Can you do the history of autism? There is a high unemployment rate for people on the spectrum.

[@Glenn77322]

The NZ minimum wage is $16.50.

[@lnb252]

in canada soon in ontario if it isnt already

[@fayecoldren-sallee5864]

Why aren't eyes and teeth already part of healthcare, Seriously, who TF decided that healthcare doesn't include 2 very important parts of the body?

[@5pctLowBattery]

“Do not let any calamity-howling executive with an income of $1,000 a day, who has been turning his employees over to the Government relief rolls in order to preserve his company's undistributed reserves, tell you-using his stockholders' money to pay the postage for his personal opinions-/that a wage of $11 a week is going to have a disastrous effect on all American industry. Fortunately for business as a whole, and therefore for the Nation, that type of executive is a rarity with whom most business executives heartily disagree.”

[@jadebirk5957]

America boost as a leader but we have been behind in many things like healthcare for all citizens other nations have been successful take notes America

[@emailjwr]

YOU GUYS NEED TO NORMALIZE THE AUDIO LEVELS BETWEEN THE SHOW AND THE OUTROS. OWW

[@Darynifiction]

I understand the bias, but to don't mention the fact that millions of people moved to the cities to work in factories because they was anyway earning a lot more than being farmes, isn't exactly honest. It just portray the capitalists as greedy bastards without informing people of the reality of life in the 19/20th century. As for the fact that the fascist party in Italy was instrumental in creating the 40 hours week, stop child labor forcing scolarization, and giving benefits to workers (parental leave, recreational paid vacations etc) half a decade before Americans move the first steps in the same direction. Yeah, fascism is bad, but the facts are facts even if you prefer to depict the image of workers strikes fighting the greedy capitalist more than giving facts. I feel a wishy washy SJW vibe that I can't relate to any other PBS channels. Could be nice to just have raw facts, and uncomfortable truths.

[@marlonmoncrieffe0728]

The minimum wage should be abolished. Let private citizens or their private union representative decide what is a fair wage or not.

[@gustavogonzalez5815]

Maximum wage anybody?

[@stphnmrrs3982]

The Capitalist Class will never give away their riches willingly. Only through collective action and constant struggle shall attain respectable standard of living

[@mikekahl5609]

Stephen you need to start a business and you can pay as much money as you want.

[@paolorizzo7677]

Great channel and content. But you need to talk slower. Seriously.

[@Languslangus]

Origin of the word Balkamization.

[@jerrywaynecalloway]

modern day slavery

[@boreyan1]

Bro you talk so fast

[@jecos1966]

The Origin of Women right to vote

[@Daisho32]

So, waitresses don't get minimum wage? That's why they run after you in the street if you don't tip. 'Merica eff yeah.

[@ariaalexandria3324]

In about 33 states, there's a separate "tipped minimum," which is about $2.53. When tips plus that don't equal the state's regular minimum wage, the employer has to make up the difference (but, if they don't, as mine didn't in Massachusetts, good luck finding an attorney willing to work for free). That sounds good and all, and you might ask "why tip?" in those states. Well, employers can, and will, either disregard the law since they know workers can't afford to sue, or will fire those employees. In the remaining 17 states, including the entire western sea board, all workers much be paid at least the regular minimum wage. So your waitress at Denny's makes at least as much as the typical McDonald's worker, even without tips, and her job isn't at risk over no tips. (As someone in the tipping system, I strongly advocate doing away with tips and instead mandating employers pay their employees at least the regular minimum. When you need tips to get to that regular minimum, you put up with stuff you wouldn't otherwise since you can't afford to give up tip-time or risk pissing off the patron who was just groping you. Tip-systems disempower workers whereas getting the regular minimum would have enabled us to say NO and file reports and such without fear of losing our jobs if we didn't get enough tips after losing that time.)

[@Daisho32]

@@ariaalexandria3324 Thanks for the precision. So yeah, waistresses should be paid more.

[@servant74]

Was Minimum Wage supposed to be a 'living wage' or a 'starting' or training wage? I have had a company, and I have worked for others, (now retired), not all company owner make a 'living wage' especially in small businesses. I know one local business that shut down due to untrue social media claims and just being tired of fighting people that wanted to do nothing but criticize even without cause or knowledge. Also, locally, there are many more jobs available at or above minimum wage than people to fill them. It seems that the welfare program has resulted in many not wanting to work if they can make 'just as much' on welfare than working. That is just a local observation, not having access to state or national information. But it would be nice to know if that is true or just a local phenominon.

[@nancyomalley6441]

It was supposed to be A living wage!

[@ariaalexandria3324]

It was meant to be a basic living wage. Nothing luxurious, but at least rent on a small apartment and enough basic food to eat. And no, that didn't mean it was expected to support a couple with a dozen kids. But a person living alone was supposed to be able to afford the basics necessary to life, and then everything else above that was supposed to be earned through mere raises and such. People thinking living wages means that people are saying everyone should make enough to own a 3br house with a couple kids in private schools eating steak and chicken overnight, a couple cars, and yearly vacations need to understand that they're wrong. Minimum is supposed to be a BASIC living wage. Instead, it's not enough to rent a basic studio apartment in most areas.

[@nancyomalley6441]

True! Yet too many people think that it was created for teens working at fast food joints-As shown here, it was invented BEFORE fast food joints were even a thing

[@MB-ts8oq]

You talk too fast!

[@bobark4421]

Thanks for going superfast thru a complex topic...useless

[@wizardadmin]

Dislike because Is it history channel or minimum wage promotion?

[@alexandrablanc7123]

I love your videos but please stop moving your hands sooooooooooo much . It is very distracting and takes away from your great info.

[@bjmccann1]

Why isn't Dr. Bainbridge my girlfriend???!!!

[@christopherdriesenga4156]

Adjusted for inflation the minimum wage has never been more than $11. I think the national minimum wage should be set to adjust itself to the poverty level and leave it up to the states to raise it to their individual cost of living.

[@mpgstudios1944]

Second

[@Barca25644]

This kind of video with no context or balanced arguments are not good efforts

[@terryrice874]

Get a better wage get a skill. Minimum wage is a starting point not a career. This lady in past episodes is racist

[@cel3469]

I would agree with you if all of our jobs weren't shipped offshore. Hike tariffs and end "free" trade agreements so that we're back to our 1950s prosperity then we'll talk.

[@mandelabutterfly9162]

It's not a starting point. Did you noy see video? It's living cost. Least amount of paid you get to afford basic nessaries.