Universal Healthcare is actually a cheaper system than the one they have currently.
Some estimates say that they would actually save $2 trillion. Not to mention the countless thousands of live which would be saved and made better or the flow on economic benefits
Current minimum in Australia is $18.93 which is approx $13.52 usd.
$18.93 is only the min when fulltime, … so comes with all that entails.
Min Casual is near enough to $24 per hour.
Here is NYC - bar tenders can easily pull in six figure salaries
Is this city, the money is there - you just have to go for it
It also depends where you live. The cost of living in NYC is higher that what it would be in Boise, Idaho. $15/hour is a lot in smaller cities and towns but it wouldn’t go far in the more expensive areas of the country; although, $15-an-hour would be a significant improvement on $7.50/hour or less in some cases.
Actual min wage in some US states is just over 5 bucks p/h, and it wasn’t long ago I remember hearing of $2 per hour being paid to wait staff in some parts of the country.
I read an article yesterday about medical bankruptcies. It stated that 60% of all folks diagnosed with cancer end up using all their life savings to combat the disease. It is unconscionable.
You know who has excellent, government-funded healthcare and pensions guaranteed for life? Our elected representatives. Yet they are the ones denying it to the rest of us.
Are we culpable for continuing to elect them?
There are states that don’t have minimum wage laws
The U.S. has a bizarre government-imposed system that bans servers from sharing tips with cooks, dishwashers and other staff who do not interact with customers and at the same time allows restaurants to pay waiters just $2.13 per hour because they are expected to make up the difference with the federal minimum wage, $7.25, in tips (although many state laws require employers to structure wages for tipped employees at a higher rate). As a result, many American waiters struggle to earn even minimum wage. Not tipping a waiter is therefore more than an insult; it is an assault on his livelihood.
They all do, at least in the tipped wage section, … but not all acquiesce to the Federal minimum.
See here.
Many are exempt & still have the $2.13 minimum rate for tipped employees., … and most cant top up with more than $5 worth of tips per hour.
It’s a fkn bizarre country.
Don’t flog yourself.
We both live in a democracy and get what the majority vote for.
While our health system is better than for the USA, it is still not a Universal Health Cover and many die or suffer waiting for treatment here. Have a neighbour who at 83 is without health insurance and on a wait list with many others for a hip replacement, maybe two years away.
So we may not have the debts but still have problems.
And you get more than $13.50 flipping burgers in the USA.
Or packing shelves.
Coupled with a lower cost of living in most parts of the country and the fact that many employers provide health plans(taking care of the concerns of the poor public health system) and its a place that’s travelling pretty well.
40% of adult Americans don’t have the savings to cover a $400 emergency
That’s 48,000,000 households
And if you’re self-employed and break your leg?
You take out your own health insurance.
Right yo.
Aussie personal debt is at what 200% to gdp?
I’d say a pretty proportionate number of aussies are in the same boat.
And that’ll cover it all, yeah?
Actually, the USA has some of the worst working poverty statistics in the OECD. And there is no requirement to provide health care for casual labour, which is why many companies now using it.
And remember, there is no age pension. Social security also only applies to non-casual labour and I think runs off what you earnt. Can’t earn enough, tough.
And that all assumes you don’t have uni debts.
I’m not suggesting it’s some socialist nirvana.
You’re saying “they’re travelling pretty well “ while they’re working two jobs, still need food stamps, and have no health cover or retirement savings.
If your looking for an environment to work smart, hard and enjoy the good. life?