I’ve been saying for a long time that we don’t really need to change the minimum wage. No, that does NOT mean I believe that businesses have been paying their employees appropriately.
Continue reading Profits at the Expense of You and Me
Today is the first Monday in September. Which makes today Labor Day. And, since 1882, when we first celebrated the event in New York City, it has grown to become a national holiday. (New York State should have been the first state to make it a state holiday- but they dawdled passing the bill, so Oregon earned that honor.)
I was reading a series of complaints by some pretty small offshoot organizations that are getting their dose of publicity. For one, I heard about it’s parent- NARAL- the National Association for Repeal of the Abortion Laws. The other claims to be a group of unions (Working Families Party) that has electoral power- results for which I can see no evidence. And, in this case, neither seems particularly powerful- unless you count 8 protesters as a major event.
Did you really think I would let the crazies spread their chicanery about pay and overtime? Especially after we celebrated our freedom. Really?
Continue reading Long Past Due
I read Warren Buffett’s piece, Better than Raising the Minimum Wage, in Friday’s Wall Street Journal. I expected better from Mr. Buffett, who has generally come across with better taxation and income ideas publicly. This piece is not up to his normal standards- because it is yet another method to have the US citizenry subsidize the actions of moderate and larger sized businesses.
Continue reading Sorry, Warren- that is a terrible idea
I admit it. I’ve never been a fan of Ponzi or pyramid schemes. And, I’m not talking about Mr. Ponzi himself- or even Bernie Madoff. No, I’m talking about Herbalife (Bill Ackman’s averral the Herbalife is a pyramid scheme, 22 July 2014) and those other ‘get rich’ schemes that make folks money by skimming the profits off other unsuspecting souls. You know, sell a product and your “upstream” team takes a portion, leaving you a smaller portion of the “profits”. The only way you make real money is to con a slew of folks to work for you- and to find others to work for them- as you skim the profits from their labors.
Continue reading The New Economy?
I’ve written about my next mentor often. (Here’s but one example– with another great story about Cary.) He was but one half of the management team that took a chance to hire me. A 14 y old kid. And, let me basically take over their baby.
OK, my blood is boiling. Dr. David Neumark is at it again.
Continue reading There he goes again…
I was reading that IKEA was going to change it’s wage policy based upon the Living Wage Calculator. First I heard of that. And, I was pleased to see that it’s an MIT project.
Continue reading Living Wages – IKEA style
║This is the fifth and final segment in this mini-series on minimum wage, living wages, the middle class, and taxes that I started this year, beginning on 7 January 2014.║
Continue reading Living Wages. The End of the Discussion- for now.
