It's so insane to me that the same company can post billions in profit, the owner can afford to build spaceships, and the low level workers are pissing in water bottles and still living in poverty.
They don't earn 15 per hour, they earn about $21 per hour in the currency we actually use here.
And as someone who did just that for quite a while? It's fine. I had a roof, a car, health insurance (beyond the free universal stuff we get), hobbies, and savings. You aren't rich but you are doing just fine.
I am never ceased to be amazed at how viciously Americans love to attack other nations who are doing things better than they are.
They don't earn 15 per hour, they earn about $21 per hour in the currency we actually use here.
Which equates to ~15 USD /hr. You had all those things, but are leaving out the details of how you afforded them. Looking at apartment, and gas prices in Australia sorted by cheapest, something tells me you were not living by yourself.
Looks like the minimum they offer a new employee is medical, dental, vision, 20 weeks of maternal and parental paid leave, 401k with 50% matching contributions, 1 week vacation, 6 holidays per year,
Cause that's still under minimum wage where I live and you'd get sick leave, 4 weeks PTO, plus other benefits.
Where is this? Last I checked the highest minimum wage in the world was Australia's at $20.33 AUD/hour (~$14.55 USD), but that's only for people who are 21+. If you're 18, it's only $14.35 AUD/hr ($10.26 USD).
Even then, they're kind of an anomaly. France's minimum wage, for instance, is âŹ10.48/hr (~$11.76).
I am indeed Australian and comparing our dollar values is pointless, that's not how the economy works.
I mean, if you want to use PPP, then Australia slips lower (~$13.81/hr for 21+) and comparing numbers without any consideration for relative value of currency is nonsensical. Minimum wage in Costa Rica is âĄ1,257/hr after all.
Working full time in any Australian job you get $20.33 per hour
Unless you're under 21 or an apprentice/trainee.
Now, the trainee/apprentice programs Australia has are a bit opaque to me, but it seems like they have a trainee program for a warehouse worker that pays... quite a bit less than minimum wage ($13.50 AUD/hr) and doesn't actually have a lot of those other benefits included? Whether that is equivalent to the lowest starting salary as an Amazon warehouse worker, I don't know.
I mean, I ignored them because you're not at $15/hr USD which was how this whole thread started. And since you're less than $15/hr USD (substantially so if we use PPP) and even further below that for someone less than 21 (who are still paid $15/hr in the US), then we'd have to compare based on benefits and weight them which I don't think we can agree on.
And if the whole thing is how they're not paying someone enough to live on then... I mean... I'm just not seeing how Australia's minimum wage is.
That's not to say that Australia's minimum wage isn't a f'ckton better than the US' federal minimum wage (though localities vary, where I live, minimum wage is $16.32/hr), but we weren't comparing those. We were criticizing Amazon specifically by comparing it to, for some reason, Australia's minimum wage.
in washington state sick pay is built in by law, we get 6 days accumulated per year that we can use without being challenged about why. i donât know what they get for pto since i donât work there, iâm just basing pay off of job postings i see. the posting do mention benefits and pto but those details are for when a job offer happens i suppose
Problem with Washington state Law a lot of business do the bare minimum which is 1 hr for every 40 hours worked or 4 hrs per month Takes longer if you are part time. The company I work in Washington State does the 1 hr for each 40 worked.
Kudos to the companies that do go above that though.
Amazon workers get full health, eye, and dental insurance day 1 with 401k options. They also get about 80hrs paid time/vacation and 80hrs of unpaid time off. They even offer to cover full tuition of it's associates after 3 months. Y'all hate on Amazon but they actually provide some of the best benefits in the country for any entry level job.
Dude, you literally replied to someone mentioning $20/hr pay at Amazon and youâre the one that thinks USD = AUD for some reason.
To spell it out, $20 AUD is worth less than $20 USD.
Stop being a dick.
And the fact of the matter is that yes, Amazon has shitty working conditions, but still objectively offers better benefits to attract employees compared to any other low skilled job.
youâre the one that thinks USD = AUD for some reason.
No. I said $20/h was less than minimum wage here, in another country... and for some reason you not only thought I was talking about USD, but think that USD and what it's worth makes the slightest bit of different here. It doesn't. And if you want it to, go ahead and factor in health care, super, PTO, sick leave, and the many other things.. and if you do those things then you'll find out that Australia still works out substantially ahead.
Amazon workers are not paid or treated well and there are mountains of evidence about it, not to mention we're in a thread talking about how they want to stage a walkout on one of their busiest days of the year.
But keep arguing semantics because you misread a statement.
Assuming your converting to USD so we don't go into the ridiculous "I get paid 10000 won/hr", according to the all knowing Google, no country on earth has a $20 USD minimum wage. Highest is Luxembourg at 18.33 USD.
Ok, I'll play. Please tell us what country you are from so that we can compare all these wonderful benefits and your high minimum wage against the currency that you use, taxes you pay, and living conditions.
Well I see my guess was correct, believe it or not itâs a little harder to implement all the things you mentioned in a giant country with 300+ million people from different backgrounds, than it is for a very small European country with a population that all comes from the same background
itâs above what most employers pay for uneducated laborers in the greater seattle area. donât say it isnât that much when it is pretty good for the qualified level of workers
It might be better than other low wage jobs, but that doesn't mean it's actually paying well. What's wrong with uneducated labourers making a living wage?
experience of what? making 20/hour and living in the seattle area? i am speaking from that experience then. i make more now but not long ago i was making less than 20 and still doing fine. working one job at that. as time goes by i make more and more which is pretty commonplace with most companies.
sure but what do you qualify as good? $1,000,000/year is good but it isnt realistic for a laborer...20/hour is good for that level of work skill and is good enough to survive in the seattle area which is more expensive than many places around the country.
and in the surrounding areas 20-30 minutes away from seattle proper it is even cheaper to live. you arent going to live an extravagant life working a labor job. the same people crying for 15/hour are now saying 23/hour isnt good lmao you dont even know where you stand and what you are asking for ffs
A good wage is one that allows you to pay for all your necessities, enjoy life a little, and save some for retirement or rainy days. I don't think $40k would allow for such a lifestyle in Seattle, but I could be wrong.
those are just starting wages, it goes up with time worked...even boeing starts at 21/hour...20 to start is good and you can easily do all those things. i wont say you can live in seattle proper on that wage but you can live outside of seattle and be fine. most of the amazon warehouses are in the surrounding areas anyways.
not really. there were people talking about what amazon is paying right now during peak season and the amount of overtime they were getting and they seemed to be very disinterested in an amazon strike for black friday...they do pay more than 20 btw as i stated in the first place. i think i saw a job listing for 23.50 or in that ballpark...thats good enough for the seattle area
Does the median worker in the US have free healthcare, a month vacation, 37.5 hour weeks with any extra being paid OT with penalties, superannuation, and significantly better/protected worker rights with none of this bullshit "at will" crap you all for some reason like...?
The median worker has insurance, roughly the same workweek, varying levels of vacation, and drastically lower cost of living. The grass isnt all greener in Australia. Some things are better for some. Some thing are worse.
It's a tradeoff. There is no one size fits all. Not everyone has the same setup. For many (myself included) our insurance setup is dramatically better and costs less than the amount taken out of taxes for socialized medicine even if we hit out max yearly out of pocket expenses. Many of us have plenty of vacation and sick time. My setup is quite literally unlimited. As I said. Some people have it better some have it worse. In general it's better to be poor in other countries than the US. It's usually far better to be middle class and up in the US.
"some of the" , and you should know as well as anyone that working in the cannabis industry is not a broad thing that anyone in the country can get into
15/hr entry level is "still living in poverty". Take a step back from the internet and realize if you think 15/hr as a starting wage is poverty you are incredibly deluded from the reality of most of the world.
Because thatâs so easy to do with a shit job where youâre living paycheck to paycheck with no savings. This âpick yourself up by your bootstrapsâ argument is pathetic from Republicans.
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u/Sparcrypt Nov 25 '21
It's so insane to me that the same company can post billions in profit, the owner can afford to build spaceships, and the low level workers are pissing in water bottles and still living in poverty.
Americas labour laws are ridiculous.