• Welcome to OGBoards 10.0, keep in mind that we will be making LOTS of changes to smooth out the experience here and make it as close as possible functionally to the old software, but feel free to drop suggestions or requests in the Tech Support subforum!

Obama to use executive order to raise minimum wage

Wrangor

Wrangor

Go Deacs
Joined
Mar 24, 2011
Messages
12,413
Reaction score
1,376
CNN reporting he will raise minimum wage on all federal contract work (his limits of power in the executive order) to $10.10.

Then proceeds to push the senate bill to do the same for all jobs while claiming he is aiming to help businesses create more jobs. I get the desire to increase the minimum wage. I don't get the disconnect about creating more jobs. Increasing labor costs by 30% will not create more jobs it will create less jobs.

And all increasing federal contract minimum wage jobs will do is make the bids higher for the government to accept. So we are just going to pay more for the same job. Perfect example of ideology over practicality. You want to increase minimum wage? Bump it a quarter and allow businesses a chance to swallow the increase. Set up a plan to increase it in the future. Jumping wages 30% is just dumb business if your goal is create jobs. The result is going to be fewer jobs, more automation, more jobs sent overseas, and more people reliant on welfare because they can't find a job.
 
Last edited:
I can't believe that out debate over the next year + is going to be over the min wage. Talk about a populist punt.
 
SkinsNDeacs said:
I can't believe that out debate over the next year + is going to be over the min wage. Talk about a populist punt.
Click to expand...

That is most definitely the point. "Year of action"
For Obama apparently means "change the topic". He is going to go back to campaigning for the Democratic Party.
 
Income inequality has gotten way worse under this prez. Lots of reasons for that (note that income inequality always gets worse if the rich increase their riches by X percent and the poor increase their riches by the same X percent) but this dumb fucker has done absolutely nothing effective to address the issue.

Raising the minimum wage does work for Obama though. It is a populist pitch and appeals to the dumb masses and it will result in more layoffs by corporate greedy bastards, which will in turn lead to more people living off of the government dole. Kindof a fool proof plan for campaigning on behalf of the Democratic party.
 
My guess without doing much research is that there aren't many companies that have federal contracts and also have significant number of employees on or near minimum wage.
 
The Wrangors and stevewhites of this world need to simmer down and actually take a measure of what this means. You guys have any clue about just how few federal contractors actually are impacted by the minimum wage? Even basic, entry-level clerical positions in the federal government are well over $10 an hour (just like the private sector). Minimum wage is generally relegated to menial task labor. Not a lot of those at the federal level. Further, wages for government contractors are set by Dept of Labor standards based on vocational classifications. Much of the data for creating those rates come straight from the private sector to ensure labor parity. So it's not like a contractor can now just say "oh look, increase in minimum wage so I'm increasing my rate too." They're still bound by the federal acquisition regulations which stipulate DOL rates.

But it's more fun to say this is the end of the free market, America, and global economy so let's do that instead.
 
Wrangor said:
Jumping wages 30% is just dumb business if your goal is create jobs. The result is going to be fewer jobs, more automation, more jobs sent overseas, and more people reliant on welfare because they can't find a job.
Click to expand...

more like 40%
 
94Deac said:
The Wrangors and stevewhites of this world need to simmer down and actually take a measure of what this means. You guys have any clue about just how few federal contractors actually are impacted by the minimum wage? Even basic, entry-level clerical positions in the federal government are well over $10 an hour (just like the private sector). Minimum wage is generally relegated to menial task labor. Not a lot of those at the federal level. Further, wages for government contractors are set by Dept of Labor standards based on vocational classifications. Much of the data for creating those rates come straight from the private sector to ensure labor parity. So it's not like a contractor can now just say "oh look, increase in minimum wage so I'm increasing my rate too." They're still bound by the federal acquisition regulations which stipulate DOL rates.

But it's more fun to say this is the end of the free market, America, and global economy so let's do that instead.
Click to expand...

Like I said in my post. This aspect only makes us pay more for some if the jobs that are bidded out. My comments were directed at Obamas push to raise all minimum wage 30%. The executive order is all politics. I understand that. Might impact some janitorial contracts on and other low wage earners on military bases and the like.
 
WFFaithful said:
How do you propose fixing the "corporate greedy bastards" part of the problem?
Click to expand...

There will and have always been greedy bastards. Never going to fix that. Organize a system that encourages more employment not less (which is what raising the minimum wage 30% will do).
 
Wrangor said:
Like I said in my post. This aspect only makes us pay more for some if the jobs that are bidded out. My comments were directed at Obamas push to raise all minimum wage 30%. The executive order is all politics. I understand that. Might impact some janitorial contracts on and other low wage earners on military bases and the like.
Click to expand...

No, it will not. Feel free to go to the DOL website and check the labor wage rates for 2013-2014. Again, even these jobs have pay rates higher then $10/hr. You and the rest of the right-wingers want to jump into Fox News-like hysterics over something like this while the impact is negligible. But as I said, facts are boring. Bumpersticker rhetoric is much more exciting. Rant! Rave! Shout! Hyperbole!

And BTW, executive orders, regardless of the president or agenda, are inherently political. Hence the name.

And incidentally, federal contractor positions have been eliminated and cut along with federal employee positions (though those are generally due to retirement attrition and subsequent elimination). So even the lower-wage scale contractors are assuming more work anyway. To attract qualified personnel, private companies who contract with the government need to provide better wages and benefits. The thing the right-wing forgets when they chant about smaller government (when it suits their agenda, of course) is that the regulatory or legal requirements which were met by those now-eliminated positions does not go away simple because you cut the people doing them. You just have less people doing more work.

Again, those damn facts and realities.
 
Last edited:
The people this really hurts the most are unskilled teenage workers.

I personally don't care if the cost of a double cheeseburger at McDonalds goes up a quarter because of this. It's absolutely a populist move, but I have a hard time seeing how this one item will be the overwhelming job killer that people are shrieking about. That said, this move in conjunction with the ACA and the constant regulatory instability over the last handful of years could absolutely combine to suppress low wage jobs.

I'm certain there are other factors involved, but the last time Congress raised the minimum wage by about 10% in 2009, there was an immediate half percent spike in the unemployment rate.

What Obama should do is add in a very nominal tax increase on minimum wage earners to go with this just to shut up the whole "skin in the game" crowd at the same time.
 
The studies on the impact of an increase to the minimum wage have been fairly mixed. The number of federal contract workers making minimum wage is like 15,000 people -- that's not really affecting the economy at large. It's a symbolic step.

Indexing the minimum wage with inflation seems like a sensible step.
 
94Deac said:
The Wrangors and stevewhites of this world need to simmer down and actually take a measure of what this means. You guys have any clue about just how few federal contractors actually are impacted by the minimum wage? Even basic, entry-level clerical positions in the federal government are well over $10 an hour (just like the private sector). Minimum wage is generally relegated to menial task labor. Not a lot of those at the federal level. Further, wages for government contractors are set by Dept of Labor standards based on vocational classifications. Much of the data for creating those rates come straight from the private sector to ensure labor parity. So it's not like a contractor can now just say "oh look, increase in minimum wage so I'm increasing my rate too." They're still bound by the federal acquisition regulations which stipulate DOL rates.

But it's more fun to say this is the end of the free market, America, and global economy so let's do that instead.
Click to expand...
That all depends on how far he pushes the mandate. Obama pushed affirmative action mandates into our suppliers and subcontractors. If he does that, then my chemical suppliers like Fischer will have to raise their wages or we will not be allowed to buy from them...without some byzantine exemption process.

The other issue are the strict wage standards already in place..and by law I believe. Contractors can not underpay wages compared to the private sector not can they over charge the government compared to the DOL standards you mention. We get audited for that stuff annually. A 40% increase in those jobs would violate law I believe.

The really stupid thing is...wages are the hardest thing to control with fed contracts. The dollars are usually stagnant for years as inflation pushes up wages. This will just end up causing layoffs and moves to temporary workers who might be exempted..because there is only so much money. If the suppliers are affected, higher costs across the board and less work for the government $$. It's like the affirmative action rules. We have to use a certain percentage of minority sub contractors...most of which in my area just buy from the same suppliers we used to, raise the price, and take a cut. Total income distribution and waste of money.
 
You go 94, I like your style on this post, never let a fact stand in the way of a good bumper sticker quote!
 
There really aren't that many minimum wage earners working for small businesses.

Can anyone find a state with a demonstrable increase in unemployment that coincides with an increase in their minimum wage?
 
Of course raising the minimum wage is income distribution. That's the point.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top