Now that my teens are working, I’m a bit uncomfortable with this. Does my teenager, whose living expenses are still fully paid by me, really need a living wage? We’re a $15 minimum wage so He’s excited about the money he’s making, but part of me feels like he’s taking some of that from someone who needs it
I guess it comes down to that it’s a job, that anyone can fill. Also that some teenagers may need a living wage
Does my teenager, whose living expenses are still fully paid by me, really need a living wage?
Thank god it’s none of my employer’s business what my living conditions are. If I can make do with a lot less because of personal circumstances then that’s good for me, but that can’t be the metric to measure other people against.
part of me feels like he’s taking some of that from someone who needs it
He’s taking it from his employer who certainly doesn’t “need it more”, otherwise they wouldn’t employ your son.
Think about the natural conclusion to the problem that you’re trying to address. What if we pay teenagers who don’t need the money less than everyone else. That would incentivize employers to … check notes … only hire teenagers who don’t need the money. Everyone else, who actually does need the money, they would have trouble finding a job. Facepalm.
Also. Because your teenagers are getting lucky, in that they have a family that’s paying all of their bills, you somehow wish that they weren’t getting lucky, and that some rich person was getting richer? Do I understand that correctly?
Furthermore. There might be value to your teens in working less so that they can do other things when they’re still teenagers. That might be something you would want to explore, since your family’s finances are in a solid state.
And hey, if you think your teenager is being overpaid, why don’t you encourage them to donate some of their money to charity?
In many other families, finances aren’t so strong. Maybe the parents can pay the bills, but if the kids want to go to college, they’ll have to take out student loans. Or they could start saving in high school, and use that money for college, or to get an apartment if they have to move out, or to buy a car, or whatever else they need after they graduate high school. All of a sudden the extra money sounds really important, doesn’t it.
No, I’m saying that while I agree that essentially every job should have a livable wage, I can’t. Reconcile that with a teenager’s part time job while living at home.
I’d entertain the idea of an exception to livable wages, even if it hurts my family. However I don’t see a reasonable way to apply that without affecting everyone
Guess who works alongside your teenager? Grown ass adults. Should they suffer so your teenager (whom you deem to not be worth a living wage) can learn whatever libertarian lesson you’re foisting on them?
I don’t know whether to upvote you on the difficulty of defining a kids job or downvote on thinking there’s some sort of a lesson different than: he’s a kid with a temporary part time job, not an adult or independent.
Obviously I’m all for him earning more and wish him every success. However speaking from a much more general perspective: should there be any exceptions to livable wages annd is this one? Is there a reasonable way to even do that?
It’s certainly not my intent to judge you or make assumptions, but that seems like kind of a weird perspective, to believe your kid should make less than their peers for providing the same labor. There are plenty of households who humbly ask their working teens to contribute a portion to bills.
Now that my teens are working, I’m a bit uncomfortable with this. Does my teenager, whose living expenses are still fully paid by me, really need a living wage? We’re a $15 minimum wage so He’s excited about the money he’s making, but part of me feels like he’s taking some of that from someone who needs it
I guess it comes down to that it’s a job, that anyone can fill. Also that some teenagers may need a living wage
Thank god it’s none of my employer’s business what my living conditions are. If I can make do with a lot less because of personal circumstances then that’s good for me, but that can’t be the metric to measure other people against.
He’s taking it from his employer who certainly doesn’t “need it more”, otherwise they wouldn’t employ your son.
Think about the natural conclusion to the problem that you’re trying to address. What if we pay teenagers who don’t need the money less than everyone else. That would incentivize employers to … check notes … only hire teenagers who don’t need the money. Everyone else, who actually does need the money, they would have trouble finding a job. Facepalm.
Also. Because your teenagers are getting lucky, in that they have a family that’s paying all of their bills, you somehow wish that they weren’t getting lucky, and that some rich person was getting richer? Do I understand that correctly?
Furthermore. There might be value to your teens in working less so that they can do other things when they’re still teenagers. That might be something you would want to explore, since your family’s finances are in a solid state.
And hey, if you think your teenager is being overpaid, why don’t you encourage them to donate some of their money to charity?
In many other families, finances aren’t so strong. Maybe the parents can pay the bills, but if the kids want to go to college, they’ll have to take out student loans. Or they could start saving in high school, and use that money for college, or to get an apartment if they have to move out, or to buy a car, or whatever else they need after they graduate high school. All of a sudden the extra money sounds really important, doesn’t it.
No, I’m saying that while I agree that essentially every job should have a livable wage, I can’t. Reconcile that with a teenager’s part time job while living at home.
I’d entertain the idea of an exception to livable wages, even if it hurts my family. However I don’t see a reasonable way to apply that without affecting everyone
Guess who works alongside your teenager? Grown ass adults. Should they suffer so your teenager (whom you deem to not be worth a living wage) can learn whatever libertarian lesson you’re foisting on them?
I don’t know whether to upvote you on the difficulty of defining a kids job or downvote on thinking there’s some sort of a lesson different than: he’s a kid with a temporary part time job, not an adult or independent.
Obviously I’m all for him earning more and wish him every success. However speaking from a much more general perspective: should there be any exceptions to livable wages annd is this one? Is there a reasonable way to even do that?
It’s certainly not my intent to judge you or make assumptions, but that seems like kind of a weird perspective, to believe your kid should make less than their peers for providing the same labor. There are plenty of households who humbly ask their working teens to contribute a portion to bills.
My kid lives at home! Therefore they should never make enough money to actually leave home and build a life for themselves!