Speaking of mandatory minimum-wage foolishness:
“Even in a robust economy such as we’re currently enjoying, the laws of supply and demand can’t be overridden. Restaurants still exist in a highly competitive environment and their profit margins remain generally low. A sudden increase in labor costs hits their bottom line immediately so they begin reducing the workforce and/or cutting back on hours for their servers and back of the house workers.
“The state is unable to artificially mandate prosperity without the free market responding to correct for the imbalance. That’s a lesson too many state and municipal governments seem painfully slow to learn.” — Jazz Shaw, via Insty.
“…That’s a lesson too many state and municipal governments seem painfully slow to learn.”
Unlearned within the Journo community also.
“the laws of supply and demand “?
Aren’t all laws made by legislatures? Which one made this so called laws of supply and demand? And that one about pi and circles and stuff? And gravity and similar BS?
Pfah, tchah, pfui, I deny reality.
But of course I’m on my third glass of Argentinian Malbec. So my reasoning processes are impaired and essentially left wing.
It suddenly comes to me through a purple haze how lefties actually think. Oh dear, we are doomed.
One, I’ve read that real waiters (i.e. not high school kids working part time or college liberal arts majors with no prospects) hate this idea. They make way more than $15/hr off of tips because they work at nice restaurants and work hard at providing service. A mandatory $15 minimum wage would kill the restaurant business or, at the very least, destroy the tip system by which these people make their money.
Two, slightly off-topic, when did a 20% tip become normal? All my life it’s been 15% for good service, 20% for exceptional. And exceptional means just that, exceptional. Right now the standard seems to be “not spitting in my drink” is “good service”, managing to “get most of the order correct” is exceptional. Not in my book. And the argument that things cost more now, thus we need to tip more, only works if you don’t understand math and how percentage tips work. Taking a family of 5 to some middle of the road chain restaurant runs well over $100, so any percentage tipping already beats the $15 minimum wage. I hate eating out.
Back in the 80’s, a sister working part-time, to put herself through Wharton Business School, made more money as a waitress at an upscale restaurant/bar than anyone else in the family. Several of us worked in Silicon Valley then.