If you are ok with minimum wage caliber of candidates, ten sure, pay minimum wage. And even so, most of them are zealots, not change makers. Minimum wage should be enough that anyone can afford at least basic shelter and necessities with a little room for saving or emergency expenses. If they are paid by the hour, maybe they will get in there as actually do some work. You will face a lot of issues in our nation. In the United States, politicians can work in the legislative, executive, or judicial branches of government. The point of an internship is to learn valuable skills. All politicians should be paid minimum wage. From April this year, the hourly rate for earners aged 21 to 2 is 9.18 an hour, up from 8.36. How Restaurant Workers Help Pay for Lobbying to Keep Their Wages Low The National Restaurant Association uses mandatory $15 food-safety classes to turn waiters and cooks into unwitting funders of its battle against minimum wage increases. You're implying that I'm a person who would be motivated to help someone with asking if I would help them or not and all are you suggesting that I'm a better person than politicians? Here are the questions used for the report, along with responses, and its methodology. Paid next to nothing, yet they still keep racking up the medals. Support for raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour is extensive across most demographic groups, according to the survey, which was conducted among 5,109 U.S. adults. If they were forced to work for minimum wage, then they would change things because they are used to living like kings and queens, literally. If they are paid by the hour, maybe they will get in there as actually do some work. They have a special role to make our society a better place to live in. Cant set limits on bribes and blackmail. What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S. What the data says about abortion in the U.S. Are you in the American middle class? The IRS should conduct routine audits into the finances of former politicians. Minimum wage jobs generally don't require much mindpower, it's do the same thing over and over and over and over until your time on shift is up. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. To follow along, you may find it helpful to. Im sure it has some similar repercussions, but at least they would be less severe, as politicians would make a fair amount more than just minimum wage. Having been raised in the British Virgin Islands, all I really want is to get back home. A minimum wage of $4.25 per hour applies to young workers under the age of 20 during their first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment with an employer, as long as their work does not displace other workers. For example, David Amess, a British Member of Parliament, was stabbed many times at a meeting with constituents in a church in eastern England. The problem would be situations like Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, who bought land, lobbied to build a highway near it, then sold it for three times what he bought it for when the highway bill went through. If you find these articles interesting, please consider a small donation to help support this site and my other activities on behalf of Scotland's independence We welcome anyone and everyone to register & become a member of our awesome community. Many politicians will make over $8,000,000.00 (yes that is 8 million) in just ten years of retirement. Without the minimum wage worker, many corporations would not exist. You end up costing jobs from people who are at the bottom rung of the economic ladder. Rep. Paul Ryan on Feb. 13, A full days hard work should be enough to keep you and your family out of poverty. Yet the minimum wage is not enough to realistically live on in this country. Parish Council member Byron Lee said paying parish workers a "livable" wage of $15 per hour is the "right thing to do" and will help the parish attract and retain its employees. And it is a process. Like 200% of average or whatever. Maybe a salary increase would at least inspire politicians to work harder? Not so little that you can't pay rent, much less your other bills with a month's rent. "[Martin Luther King, Jr.] would want us to celebrate him, his birth and his legacy by acting upon his agenda, by realizing the dream, by making the minimum wage a living wage, by having not just family and medical leave, but paid sick leave for our workers, [and] by having quality, affordable child care so that our families, the power of women can be unleashed in our economy and in our society. Rep. Nancy Pelosi on the 50th Anniversary of MLKs I Have a Dream speech. Gov. Americans need to view the position of politicians as an honor and duty. Your argument does not explain the fact that the great change makers in history worked for humanity, not a paycheck. If being a politician is not paid at all, we will prevent greedy and selfish politicians from entering politics who only want monetary incentives and do not care about their people. All that they need to be paid is parliamentary allowance to help them with their work instead of raking hundreds of our dollars. If politicians got paid minimum wage, I guarantee minimum wage would be a comfortable wage. Surely we want that process to continue. Lets implement these changes and see how many of them stick around. But this basic American value no longer applies to millions of hardworking Americans because the real value of the federal minimum wage has been allowed to fall sharply over the years. Just last year, after attending closed-door briefings regarding the economic fallout that would accompany the coronavirus, three of those assholes sold hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of stock before the market could crash. But now I'm confused by what you're trying to point out. The country would probably save billions in tax dollars that could get us jobs for this failing economy or healthcare for the billions that cannot afford it and cannot get help from the failing Medicaid system. Interesting, since you have neither met me nor most politicians (i'm guessing that you didn't, correct me if I'm wrong). Research driven insights on business, policy, and markets. If the politicians got paid what a lot of the US citizens got paid they would feel how it is to try to take care of a family.They get to live it up on our hard earned money. For instance, if you are an important politician that needs to attend a meeting all over the world, you will be able to travel the world for free. Shakespheare is outdated. Smaller majorities of those in middle- (58%) and upper-income households (55%) say they favor a $15 minimum wage. Thinker. If the politician is mostly motivated to enter politics and rule the country because of monetary incentives, it means that they would prioritize their interests over the countrys national interests. Unfortunately, not enough people grow up in shit conditions in order to make up a government. Pedophiles were victims should we give them power? These views differ by race and ethnicity, as well as by income. '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''. I definitely do not think that the President needs to earn 300,000 per year for life and not have to pay for anything while in office or that Congress needs an automatic annual raise unless they specifically vote against it (how many people are going to do that?). Secondly, politicians generally set their own salaries. All we have is the IQ test, which kind of sucks. Should people be allowed to become millionaires? Yet the minimum wage is not enough to realistically live on in this country. If they commit to the job of representing the electorate then that is what they should do. The state legislators main function is to make a law that caters to the needs of the state. If that is to happen, it must be possible for anyone to become an elected representative. Take a poll about whether politicians should get a raise, and the result is likely to be a resounding, No. Now theres empirical research to support that response. The president is paid $400,000 a year as commander-in-chief of the country. "We can't compete with the private sector, but we want to make sure that our salaries are consistent and competitive with other municipalities," said John Dumas, the parish's personnel director. Im not so sure a lot of them get that. How much are politicians paid in your country? Many people do not realize that many politicians make 6 figures (well over $100,000.00) a year. Thats why, since the last time this Congress raised the minimum wage, 19 states have chosen to bump theirs even higher. The presidency is the highest elected position. It would be almost impossible to measure who is smarter. Most people will never see this kind of money over their entire lifetimes. Exactly. . We got payed next to nothing, yet the output was amazing. The public picks up that tab for the pampered and spoiled MPs along with their second home scam. I think it actually is counterproductive in many ways. Well, politicians have to work and support their families also. Heres whats going to happen: Theyre going to have to lay people off. Gov. Only one-in-ten Americans in all say that federal minimum wage should remain at the current level of $7.25 an hour. We cover all sorts of topics, so there's bound to be something inside to pique your interest. According to a study by Professor Emir Kamenica, along with colleagues from Columbia University, Princeton University, and DONG Energy, raising politicians salaries is unlikely to result in better governance. If the fact MPs salaries have increased eight times in the last ten years while the real terms salaries of nurses andcarers have been slasheddoesnt make you angry you should check your chest cavity for the presence of a heart and your brain for evidence of a conscience. The benefits suck. "No person in America can make it on $8, $10, or $12 an hour. The case for paying health and social care workers a wage commensurate with the vital nature of the service they provide stands on its own merits. This should indeed be greeted with derisiveness, considering Brazil's average per capita GDP is less than. We all make sacrifices for the things we truly care about, and if you want the responsibility of governing your neighbours you need to be willing to let go of some thingslike the prospect of becoming rich. But they shouldnt be allowed to become millionaires and govern society. Politicians get around this by going from office to office and from state to state. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. The point is, one of the priorities of the politicians would become: Making minimum wage a living wage. JavaScript is disabled. Re: All politicians should be paid minimum wage. Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020. Similarly, Republicans who live in areas where the state minimum wage is $12 or higher are slightly more likely than those living in places where the $7.25 federal minimum wage applies to say they favor raising the federal minimum to $15 an hour (32% vs. 25%). " Duncan Spence says: Sep 4, 2020 at 08:33. The current minimum wage in New Jersey is $8.60 per hour. Politicians will raise the minimum wage to whatever they are comfortable being paid, how many people would lose their jobs if minimum wage was raised to $50/hr. Jefferson Parish regularly offers its employees salary increases tied to performance. It would cause inequality between politicians, which could cause all sorts of problems though. Unlike the private sector, in a classified system, "you can't just fix the bottom rung," Lee Sheng noted. Being a politician does not require a specific degree or major. People can freely express their opinions to the government and influence politics through public protests, signing petitions, lobbying, writing letters, or attending meetings. Without the minimum wage worker, many corporations would not exist. Reader. It remains skewed in the same way today even if arguably not to the same extent and certainly not so brazenly. But if the employee spends half their time being taught and half their time doing actual produ. In democratic countries, people can have a say in how their nation is managed by voting for their preferred member of parliament. They can elect judges and other government officials, as well as veto legislation. They do minimal work on purpose, they only ever fight for the people who pay them the most, they only do it for the paycheck and the pension, and they never feel any type of guilt about it. But they should not have other employment as consultants, executive directors of shell companies or whatever. I'm not saying you are right or wrong, just that you don't have data to support this statement. That sounds like an easy way to increase corruption through bribery. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the Centers American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. Only one-in-ten Americans in all say that federal minimum wage should remain at the current level of $7.25 an hour. The justice and sense and utility of that is plainly apparent. While Democrats are largely united in their support for increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, Republicans views differ by household income. Should Jefferson Parish follow suit? Accept Cookies. (LogOut/ Those people that will hate the politicians will take them down verbally but others will physically attack them. More than half of Americans who favor a $15 federal minimum wage (54%) say that if there is not enough congressional support for such an increase this year, Congress should prioritize increasing the wage even if the new wage is significantly less than $15. Raymond Fisman, Nikolaj A. Harmon, Emir Kamenica, and Inger Munk, Labor Supply of Politicians, Working paper, July 2013. This petition starter stood up and took action. 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