Just wondering what people think should be the minimum wage in the states, and can someone actually live on that wage?

In Australia, our lowest paid get minimum $37,500 a year.

They also get:
Average 12 paid public holidays (varies a little depending on which state you are in)
5-8 paid sick days which accumulate if unused
4 weeks paid vacation which accumulates if unused
Long service leave of about a week a year (available after 7 years with same company)
Paid maternity leave for 6 months (paid by government)
No reliance on tips to make ends meet, although we actually do often tip if service is good.

Thats amazing!!! Of course you guys dont get into stupid wars nearly bankrupting the country. Bernie Sanders (whom I followed since 2005) would like to change things here for the better, but some of the low-information trolls here probably wont listen to him.

That's right to a point. We often stupidly fight in the same wars although to a lesser extent as allies of the USA.
What we don't do is start those wars with countries that are not our friends for strategic reasons to help serve our best interests. Particularly if those interests happen to be access to cheap oil.

We also don't try and overthrow governments and then end up leaving the country in horrible turmoil due to the fact that the puppet government we installed is now fighting with every group the original government managed to keep under control.

We also don't fund, train and supply weapons to rebel groups to help us overthrow a government only to have those rebel groups become one of the worst enemies ever.

Well... the % of money spent on wars and our military is off the charts.Good for Australia! Do you have medical care, or do you have to buy it?

US minimum wage (federal) is $7.25/hour and state/city minimums can be higher. Pretty much everything else is determined by state.
Where I live minimum wage is $10.30/hr. A cheap apartment here is $900/month (good luck finding one that cheap).
Holidays - depends, usually 6 days, but if you work in a sweat shop then 0.
CA has paid family leave - up to 6 weeks partial pay. Most states - 0.

Sick leave, vacation are pretty much up to the employer. So if you're working at a sweat shop you get the same number of sick days as vacation - 0.

Before "obamacare" you could have the best health care you could afford. If you made minimum wage then health care consisted of waiting until you were really, really sick and then getting a free ride (ambulance) to emergency for free care. Now with "obamacare" and minimum wage it has all changed. Now when you get sick you wait until you were really, really sick and then getting a free ride (ambulance) to emergency for free care. Oh, and that doesn't cover drugs.

Basically, in the US if you make minimum wage the solution seems to be "make more money". If you're not capable, well, that's not our problem.

All Australians have access to free medical care so free doctors visits and such (including home visits). My wife was sick on a Sunday a few weeks ago and we had a doctor at the house within a couple of hours free of charge. You may have to wait for surgeries which are done on a priority basis so the most important and life threatening are done very quickly but if you have less urgency you may have to wait a while. But everyone gets treated for free.
Drugs are free mostly to the unemployed and low income earners but most drugs are subsidized for everyone. Average script is about $20 - $30.00 for drugs that would otherwise cost hundreds.

If you want fast surgery and your own choice of doctor and hospital you can take out your own health insurance as well. But no one dies in Australia because they can't afford medical care. Maybe 20% or less have private health insurance.

I know Obama originally wanted to introduce the same system we have here which works really well, but he got shot down and it got whittled down and whittled down again until it became what it is now.

Real healthcare for the whole country for about 1% of everyone's taxable income (except unemployed and low income).
How the hell does that not pass.

3 years ago i had a 35k surgery that cost me nothing. I just had to wait a couple of months to get it. If it was life threatening or i was in too much pain it would have been quicker.

A black man suggested it. Thats how.

It's bizarre when I was in Brazil, I got really sick. Spent two days in the hospital... It would have cost me a few thousand or more here. There, they rolled me out odf the clinic... Not even any paperwork!

Mac is right, too. If Obama were white it would be different. A LOT of things would be different. Have you witnessed how he has been treated and disrespected from the Right? They have voted against him on every issue.

Canada and Australia, Denmark, Sweden and France are doing things right.

I've always though both US political parties were right on some issues (alas, never the same issues). However in 2008/2009 when the economy was in free fall and thousands were out of work the #1 issue for the Republican party was - block everything Obama wanted and ensure he didn't get elected? Shouldn't the #1 priority for all parties is to represent their constituency and do what is best for the country? I'm finding it hard to forgive the Republican party.

And now they're moving further towards obstinacy. No compromise on anything. Perhaps those in the tea party should do a little reading about The Great Compromise. The US didn't originate from those that refused to deviate from their ideals. It can from those that understood all points of view have value and compromise isn't a bad word, it's how you can get things done.

Well said. The current R party is a cesspool. I am old enough to remember when it was a pretty damn good party, but that expired decades ago!

not the states, but here in Quebec Canada (some are provincially regulated like wage and holidays)

minimum wage is 10.55/h (9.05/h for jobs that have tips)
if I am not mistaken there are 9 official public holidays
minimum Vacation pay start at 4% (i.e. 2 weeks a year for a normal job, but for something like a summer job as a student he might not have any vacation and get a 4% "vacation pay" at the end of the summer - but most companies start at 3 weeks for permanent employees)

"Maternity" is a bit complicated.
if we are talking job security it is
Maternity leave 18 weeks (continuous - can start before birth)
Paternity leave 5 weeks (continuous - can start before birth)
there is also a Parental leave of 52 weeks for either parent. (not necessarily continuous).

but that does not include pay, just that you get back to work as if nothing happened.

For pay the employer does not need to pay anything (but many do by topping off in part for some time)
QPIP (government) pays and there it is tricky since there are options and none will cover the full 70 months( a mom that takes off 18+52). for example (longer case of being paid) a mother can take 18 months Maternitity @70%+ 7 months parental @70%+ 25 month @55% and 0 past that.

which is why we usually discuss it as being a year (50 paid weeks+ 2 weeks vacation and then she goes back instead of more weeks at 0%

The Maternity leave sounds more complicated than ours but overall you get paid for longer by the sounds of it. Otherwise pretty similar.

I notice the minimum wage still seems below a level that you could live on but i don't know average Canadian living expenses.

Here the minimum hourly rate is about $18 per hour off the top of my head for an adult (over 18 years old).
In the cheaper suburbs of Melbourne, rental for an older 3 bedroom house would be about $300 per week.
Petrol (92 octane) is about $1.50 a liter or $5.70 per gallon.
A loaf of plain white bread is about $3.50
A cup of coffee average is about $4.00-$5.00 (much higher standard than starbucks though)
A subway footlong meatball sub is about $8.00
A fatboy Harley Davidson is about $29,000 new plus registration and insurance.
A basic Mazda 3 or similar level car is about $20 - $25,000
A 50" Panasonic 1080 TV is about $1500.00
Medical treatment is mostly free but you can get extra insurance if you want to specify where, when and which doctor.

Just as a general cross section of what stuff costs.

yeah, and I went as simple as I could with an example. the QPIP offers two options (the basic I mentioned above as well as the special plan that for maternity= 75% for 40 weeks max.)


most likely, but minimum wage is not really built to live on. What I mean is a student with a part time job, looking for some spending cash it works OK I guess, if someone in his 30's or 40's is still working for minimum wage then there is something wrong with his situation. It is a stepping stone not something to live at.





I never rented, but according to [Link: cbc.ca] for Montreal area the cheapest area Montreal North for an apartment is $682 a month.

gas is ~1.10/L right now (can fluctuate a lot but that is what I paid last night)
A loaf of plain sliced white bread ~3.00$
A 50" Panasonic 1080 TV is about $1000.00 + tax
Medical treatment (not dental) is "free" but at some clinics there can be some fees for some services.

PS the apartment prices (cheapest ones) might not include heating which is a necessity with our climate.

They are renting "apodments" here... 400 sq ft units 1200$ no parking. Some of these apodments have communal kitchens and bathrooms.


I swear they are building apartments and condos on top of one another.

AMazon is blowing up this town.

A house I bought back in the early 80's for $84,000 just sold for $750,000... without any upgrades.

It's getting crazy expensive to live here.