News-Record.com

I am glad Christine you do not prepare my taxes. I still looking for that law that says you must work for minimum wage.

you have to add in the earned income credit.
As a business owner in Greensboro I know of a lot of employers that can't find people to fill jobs now at 8-9 dollars an hour. Their only requirement is you show up, look respectable, be able to carry on a sentence, do simple math,
and show a little effort. My starting pay is higher than this but I also require a drivers licence. My point is there are better paying jobs out there but you as an employee have to bring something to the table not just your hand out.

"Shame on you, Ms. Edge, for forcing this minimum-wage earner to live in a shelter and eat at the soup kitchen."

So if you don't support government control over private businesses then you are forcing people to live in squalor? I'll never understand the warped liberal mind.

"Why don't you give him more money so he can stand up tall and pay for them himself?"

"Give him more [of other peoples'] money so he can stand up tall"...
I have serious doubts that people who are dependant on government to achieve the next level of income will "stand tall" when the raise comes through, Christine.

Christine,
It is hard, terribly hard, to have a discussion about poverty when people refuse to acknowledge the obvious.

Just look at the above comments! Until they can comprehend "existing" on a minimum wage, they'll NEVER be able to participate in a discussion about it.

"So if you don't support government control over private businesses then you are forcing people to live in squalor"

Since when is a minimum wage law governmental control over private business???

I suppose that you would be supportive of slave labor then neo? wouldn't want any governmental control over private business.

I suppose you are against OSHA and the EPA and all those other governmental agencies sticking their "liberal" noses into private business too.

I will never understand the warped neo-conservative mind. Niot a real conservative, just thinks he is.

I have serious doubts that neo-cons are capable of logical, independent thought.

Liberal, what would the taxes in NC be on $11,712, what would it be on federal taxes?
you always go on your character assassination, trips. Now please show me the law that says you must work for minimum wage. Trufncsu, Our company could not get help at $ 11.00 a hour in 2000. They did not want jobs, they wanted a pay check.

"Until they can comprehend "existing" on a minimum wage,..."

When was the last time you existed on min. wage Demon Deacon? Why don't you respond in substance to turfncsu's post about employers not being able to find warm bodies for $8-$9/hour? As an employer I believe he/she knows a bit more about the market than you do.

Another part of the equation Ms. Willard omits. How about the min. wage earners who have a spouse/partner working? How about the govt. programs available to low income people? Medicaid, food stamps, WIC and others? That part is always conveniently left out.

"they'll NEVER be able to participate in a discussion about it." Seems we are participating in a discussion regardless of your thoughts.

I went out to the US 1040EZ Tax Estimator and redid the math because "it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how much money a single person on minimum wage makes."

Let's start with the first part: how much money you make. Since the minimum wage in North Carolina is $6.15/hour, we multiply that by 40 to get $6.15 * 40 = $246, not $244.

Now multiply that by 52: $12,792, not $11,712.

First of all, you forgot about the standard deduction and personal exemption that the person gets plus the fact that he or she is in the 10%, not the 15%, tax bracket. Note that he or she is not eligible for the earned income tax credit unless he or she has kids (the cutoff is $12,590 for someone who is single). Total federal taxes: $404.

To calculate it yourself, go to:
http://www.finance.cch.com/sohoApplets/TaxEZ1040.asp

Then I went ahead and did the state taxes. You begin with federal taxable income ($4042), add back in part of the standard deduction ($2350) and part of your personal exemption ($900) and get a total of $7292, of which 6% is taken out for state taxes: $7292*6% = $437.52, which we will call $438.

As for social security, it is 6.2% but you forgot the 1.45% for medicare, so the total is 7.65%, not 6.2%: Total for social security and medicare: $978.59, which we will call $979.

So what does that leave our hypothetical person: $12792-404-438-979=$10971.

Rent? I went to the want ads of the Greensboro News and Record and there are several ads for 1 bedroom apartments for between $400 and $450 a month. In addition, a person can always share a 2 bedroom apartment, as I did in my bachelor days and 2 bedroom apartments can be had for about $500 a month according to the classifieds ($250 each). However, I will be charitable and allow the person a 1 bedroom apartment for $450 a month.

$450 x 12 = $5400

$10,971 - $5400 = $5,471.

Deduct the $480 for the bus passes and the person still has nearly $5,000 for everything else, not a little over $2,000 as suggested in the letter to the editor.

If the person decides to split the cost of a 2 bedroom apartment, then they will have almost $7,500 a year to live on. Is this a lot? No, it isn't but it is more than 3 1/2 times what was claimed in the letter to the editor.

Would they be better off if their job paid more? Of course they would. That is -- if they still have a job after the wages are raised. Has anyone in Greensboro noticed that the unemployment rate is rising and there are more and more businesses that are going bankrupt? How do proponents suggest that businesses are going to PAY these higher wages? I know what I would do if I were a Greensboro business owner who was paying my workers minimum wage if this ordinance passes: start looking to relocate to High Point after my lease expires.

Does this mean that I do not have compassion for those on minimum wage? Of course I do. I used to live below the poverty line when I was going to graduate school getting my doctorate. I know what it is like. It stinks. I remember running out of money for food and going several days eating only one meal a day and that meal was spaghetti (no sauce, just the spaghetti) since it was cheap and filled me up (it also let me unplug the refrigerator, which tends to consume the most electricity in your apartment). I learned not to turn on the heater but instead to wrap myself in blankets to keep warm. As for lighting, I'd use the sun, as opposed to turning on a light. I'd go to the public library for my entertainment (reading). I shared a 2 bedroom apartment with three other students and I relied on public transportation to go everywhere. Medical insurance? I went without seeing the doctor or the dentist for four years. Cable TV? Try no TV. I had a transistor radio as my only information source. Telephone? I was on the universal lifeline plan. Life at the time wasn't fun. But you know what? I didn't ask for any government assistance either and I was fully responsible for all of my costs.

That is one big reason to get more education and job skills and that is the way to raise someone out of poverty, not by mandating a wage for someone who does not produce enough to justify it.

And it's Zagros for the win.

I'm amazed that so many people believe minimum wage earners remain a static population. To view others as eternally incapable seems insulting and degrading.

Roger

Let’s start from the beginning. I was reared in Randleman and was born in 1955. Minimum wage jobs were about all I could get since I chose to quit school at 15 years of age. I worked minimum wage jobs or production jobs until I was about 25 years old. I decided to get a GED, then classes at the local community college for things I enjoyed that related to the kind of work I was currently employed in...Then, low and behold I decided to marry and move to High Point...and I also decided that I was going to learn a new skill and work besides hosiery and furniture mill work. Without the educational back ground I found employers willing to raise my pay rate based upon my showing up everyday on time, willing to work overtime, and showing the willingness to learn all parts of the business...Low and behold...the company I currently work for (and have for 25 years) saw something they liked...a lady willing to go the extra mile for decent pay!!! They sent me to community college to get an associate degree and the company was willing to reimburse me for grades of A-B-C with the pay rate based on the grade achieved in classes...needless to say I graduated with honors...smiles...simply amazing...They wanted a worker who worked and were willing to support that worker...I also was sent by this same company to university and also graduated with honors...so my personal input would be, let the system work the way it is meant to work, pay based on work and accomplishments...I now employ between 3 and 5 temporary workers at a time...I think some of you would be amazed to find out that 2/3rds of them do not show up on time, will not work overtime, and most don't even show up everyday...and these are what I have to choose from for a full time position??? And I am expected to pay more for this…I don’t think so…

"Why don't you give him more money so he can stand up tall and pay for them himself?"

I heard this in the Target checkout line last weekend. My daughter wanted some candy and told me that if I gave her a dollar, she'd pay for it herself. She's only 5, but I fear she has socialist tendencies.

This debate is just sooo ridiculous! Since when did anyone assume that people are supposed to have the luxury of a living space on their own, afford a car payment, cable tv, full health coverage, etc, with just minimum wage?? Minimum wage means that you are contributing the least amount to the economy/society with your job. You should be in a transitional stage of your life, with roomates, scraping by until you attain a better education or work training that allows you to move on up. Also, if you want more, you should be working TWO jobs to make ends meet.

When I went through high school and college, I worked at least part time all the way through, and understood that my near minimum wages were not going to get me anything more than a low end place to live, probably with a roommate, and I would have to ride a bike while saving money for something better. These arguments about raising min wage seem to think that everyone is entitled to a great life with all the basics and then some just by working one job at a fast food place. If it was supposed to be that easy, everyone would get by with a McJob, while other businesses closed down or moved.

"Regarding Sheryl Edge's letter (Feb. 29): Do the math. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how much money a single person on minimum wage makes. For a 40-hour week (before taxes), $244, or $11,712 a year (52 weeks with no vacations), which is taxable at 15 percent by the IRS, 6 percent by North Carolina and 6.2 percent by Social Security. That leaves the grand net sum of $8,526.33."

Sure, but like This Dog Bites Back says: "I'm still looking for that law that says you must work for minimum wage." Before I graduated from College I worked 3 jobs, two of which were minimum wage jobs. I managed to graduate, and I'm no longer working for minimum wage. What a concept?

If you don't want to be stuck working minimum wage, then do something to change yourself. Upgrade your skills, get your degree, even show initiative where you're currently working for minimum wage (maybe you'll get a raise). The point is that nobody is forcing you to work for minimum wage.

Looks like this LTE was shredded. Nice math Zagros, are you a tax accountant or something similar?

Kat and unbiased shared personal stories of starting out with nothing and becoming something, that's supposed to be the American dream non?

Roger, your point is excellent, to assume people are only capable of working eternally for min. wage is quite degrading. I started work at McDs at min wage and worked my way to higher wages quickly by 1) showing up for work 2) showing up for work on time 3) doing my work assigned and 4) willing to chip in extra hours and take on more responsibilities. Imagine that concept!! I was offered a management position within a year but politely declined as I wanted to finish school and seek other interests.

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Mikeg said:

"I suppose you are against OSHA and the EPA and all those other governmental agencies sticking their "liberal" noses into private business too."

I worked for 11 years with a company that did OSHA safety consulting mikeg.

An employee knows what he/she is being paid mikeg. He/she also has the option of achieving more skills, education, etc. to improve his/her position and corresponding salary, just ask Kat and unbiased.

On the contrary, an employee may not know if he/she is exposed to hazardous amounts of dust, noise, chemicals, physical stressors and other workplace hazards. Can you tell me what noise level in decibels is in which hearing protection is needed to prevent hearing loss? Perhaps you know as I believe you mentioned prior that you are a business owner.

How many employees know this?

Therefore I support OSHA and EPA regulations (well, not all of them) which are designed to protect employee health and safety. They may not be educated as to these risks, therefore govt. regulations are appropriate.

As for pay, hell everyone knows EXACTLY how much they are paid. The individual has much more control in this situation, therefore I don't understand why govt. has to meddle in this affair.

As I asked in a previous post, why $9.36/hr.? Why not $9.35 or $9.37? The govt. has no business deciding what wages should be.

Holy crap . . . I hope someone is getting paid more than min. wage to write all this stuff . . .

One of the saddest parts about this LTE is that all the moaning and groaning is directed at the employer who supposedly doesn't pay enough rather than government for stealing about $3,000 from the guy.

I am happy to see the blogs, that show it can be done. Kat, I have the same story, I owe my employer every thing. I went there with no money, no education, and was able to retire at 56. Thanks to all those companies, that are willing to let people have a chance at a good life. Its called a little extra effort on the workers part.

Please make note that Demon Deacon did not answer any of the question? Always personal attacks, never a solution.

"Please make note that Demon Deacon did not answer any of the question? Always personal attacks, never a solution"................................
try to remember that dd aka tlc is a practicing christian....but what he or she is practicing is not the gospel. he/she lives in a hate filled little world of snipes, innuendos and put downs and to top it off , is self righteous.
i work for minimum wage (by choice) and bring home a $365 check every two weeks - not much to brag about but it does help pay the bills.

"Always personal attacks, never a solution."

Were you expecting anything else?

Why do you work for min. wage by choice buz?

Christine said: Do the math. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how much money a single person on minimum wage makes.

Apparently it does.

If you have to live on minimum wages, then it would appear obvious you need to better yourself.

I too started out after graduating "9th" grade"by joining the USAF. While there I got my GED, then went to night school and graduated High School.
When I got out, I worked at lower paying jobs a few years( but did not whine about it). I continued to move up as my skills got better. I did go to work in a good paying job and retired after 35 years there.
My position and pay increased over those 35 years
because of hard work not whining and begging.
It is not the place of the "guvmint" to set pay scales
for private business'.