1975 Pay= 2015 Pay

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/minimum-wage-jobs-pay-roughly-the-same-as-they-did-in-1975-1.2708717

http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/140716/dq140716b-eng.htm

When our working poor are making the same amount as they did 40 years ago, but the price of everything from homes to vehicles has been marked up at least 100%, how do you expect the working poor to get ahead at all?

My children are making the same amount as their grandparents and great grandparents did in the '70s, They do not have to deal with the cost of a home being $15,000-$30,000 to purchase and rent it isn't $100-$500 a month but having to deal with the housing of $150,000-$500,000 to buy and to rent being as high as $3000 a month.

We have stopped producing low earners. 

This may sound like the stupidest thing anyone has heard, but I began to wonder why someone would have to work 3 jobs. I understand the money situation and that there are that many low paying positions available, but I also started considering WHY?

Baby boomers parents came from a generation where their parents were sometimes having 7 to 20 children. For instance, my grandmother came from a family of 13 children with the loss of twins at the start of the family. That is a lot of workers and while they are retired now, some are still alive.

My grandmother’s generation, because many families grew up with so many children, did not have a lot of extras, so they tried to install in their children how important it was to earn a good wage, not work at those jobs that you are only making minimum wage; which is important. She and grandpa only had 4 children and that was called the Baby Boomer years. Now that is Funny.

So we went from 7-20 children in a poor to middle base incomes to 3-6 children in that same class base.

Baby Boomers, how many children did you have? I believe if you look at the average household of baby boomers that are on the verge of retiring at an income of $75,000+/year at this time in their life they will have 0 to 4 children.

Again, a drop in the procreation of the working poor/middle class, why?

Two things happen when we do this. The first, because the working poor do not make much, we teach our children from an early age that they need to get into a profession that will make them money, eg. Get into politics, lawyer, dentist, doctors, professional sports, a trade…something that is going to support them and their family better than how they lived and how their parents lived and so on.

Because minimum wage is only a quarter of what a lowest paid professional would make, NO ONE wants to do those jobs.

So what happens, many of those baby boomer children and many of those children of the baby boomers become professionals.

We are left with minimum paying jobs that instead of having 7 to 20 workers doing we now have 2 to 4 workers doing, which is actually less because many of those 2 to 4 workers have become professionals and are in the middle to rich classes.

Two…

We know children cost money, so we don’t have as many. We don’t have as many so we are not repopulating the work force.

Those who are living in the working poor are not able to do things like:

·        Pay bills on time many times

·        Buy any type of home

·        Have our cars fixed so we can get to work safely without going into debt or putting aside another bill

·        Save for our retirements

·        Save for a rainy day

·        Go on vacations…which does not bother us, it is just a point I want to make clear that if you can do this, save, and pay bills…you aren’t poor you are middle class.

·        Pay for extracurricular activities for children

My generation, Generation X and the last of the Baby Boomers, have been accused of flooding the work  force with working poor who are now living off the Middle/Rich class taxpayers. If that were true we wouldn't need immigrant workers now would we?

I have 2 children and two step children that I helped support. My older two have a different mother. They are in their early 20’s. Their careers, for the most part, rely on the oil industry.

My daughter has been laid off. She was on maternity leave last year so will get nothing from Employment Insurance, or at least very little. Her significant other has been laid off as well, but they will be making a quarter of their income on Employment Insurance, if not less. That is working poor.

Could they better themselves, you bet, but who will be doing their jobs? And really, Why should they have to? Their jobs are just as important as anyone other persons. A lawyer could not do my daughter or my son-in-laws jobs properly without the training, so why are they paid such a great deal less? Is their job easier? You don’t have to be as “educated”, but that doesn't mean it is easier.

My son says he will be fine he is still working, but I still worry because not long ago he was in a car accident where he was rear ended and he had to live off his savings for a while, which is now gone.

My son, 17, is graduating this year. He really enjoys welding and we have encouraged him to follow that career. It doesn't guarantee he will be middle class, but it does mean he may be one of those higher paid working poor, so instead of making $10 an hour he might make $30.

Will they have children?

My daughter is 13, but she is adamant that she in no way shape or form wants children, which can change, she is young.

But again…This means less people going into the work force if she still feels this way in 10 to 20 years.

Yes, some in these generations have had more children. While I only helped support and raise 4 children, my best friend has helped support and raise 9 in total in some way shape or form. But on average, we are not having as many children.

We are doing it to ourselves.

We are allowing our working poor to live on less because we believe they deserve less.

So those who are the working poor have fewer children to fill those working poor jobs or teach their few children to go for professional jobs to get out of the rut of being the working poor, not a bad thing but still causing a shortage in the number of people working those teaching, nursing, janitor, bus driver, Wal-mart, fast-food positions.

I will give you a hint, if Costco can pay their workers a living wage and benefits and if other countries can make businesses pay living wages…our “democratic” governments can make Wal-mart and McDonalds as well.

What are the benefits of companies like Wal-mart paying living wages and benefits?

Your tax dollars do not go to paying for the working poor living off the system…BONUS!

Those children that my generation and the generations of working poor after me would not need your tax dollars for the basics of life like groceries and utilities so that we can fix our vehicles to get to those jobs without having to worry about the car dying, the furnace quitting or the toilet plugging up if they were paid a living wage.

Your tax dollars should then be put into Canada Pension Plan/Social Security, education, taking care of our military peoples, health care, transportation, job creation, Right?

The working poor are not expecting or asking for enough to take elaborate vacations, $50,000 vehicles or even $400,000 homes.

They are asking for enough not to have to worry about the car, the baby or the house, the food, the utilities...and they shouldn't have to.

The Rich will Always become Richer, if Allowed

In the late 12th century England's people were on the verge of revolution.

Under the oppression of being severely taxed the peoples of London and the surrounding area started secretly storing weapons in London. They were preparing for a war against their oppressors. 

The reasons for the taxes? War and the 3rd Crusade under their King...King Richard, Richard the Lion Heart, who some people today believe was the good king and was usurped by his brother John. Not so. 

Richard died of Gangrene from an arrow wound. King Richards greed is what caused the wound. After besieging the castle of Chaluz in Limousin where he laid claim to a treasure that did not exist because he had already drained his coffers.

Some people like to believe this was the time of Robin Hood. Others know differently, but this is not my point.

My point to this little history lesson is this, after many years of oppression under the taxation for sending a King to war with France or Germany or on the 3rd Crusade the people of England had enough. They revolted. 

Can we see history repeating itself in the near future? 

After over 800 years you would think that the governments of this world would realize that those who HAVE should be taxed and those who HAVE NOT should not be taxed as much.

After over 800 years you would think that the governments of this world would realize that those taxes should be going to things worth spending money on. 

Some examples would be educating our next generation. How about educating them on how to proved better energy resources? How about educating them on equality for all? How about educating them on tolerance? How about just EDUCATING them in general.

From where I stand we teach ignorance, inequality and bigotry. Which leads to bullying, which then leads to school shootings and suicides.

How about spending those taxes on our health care? Would taking care of the elderly, who worked to proved these great resources we now have, not be beneficial to all? Would taking care of our veterans not be respectful of what they have given up for us? Would taking care of those who cannot take care of themselves not make sense instead of them living off the streets, eating out of garbage cans?

From where I stand we allow our elderly, veterans and ill to suffer needlessly.

How about spending the taxes on the people instead of on wars? Wars on the other side of the world and wars in our own countries. We keep fighting because of inequality. Inequality that has not changed in over 800 years. 

I speak about countries like Norway where their education and health care are provided and I have people say "well yeah, but they have half their checks taken from them for taxes."

You are not listening to the numbers. Their minimum wages are $5 or more higher than ours, so basically they are taking home the same amount of money or more than we are and still getting the benefits we want to see. 

They have learned in the last 800 years that they HAVE to take care of the little people. The little people out number the rich, we know this, if they do not take care of the little people the little people get mad...and when that happens...well, every major country in Europe has felt a revolution at one time or another. 

The financial inequality that is happening in the U.S. is going to boil over very soon if the government does not start MAKING those who HAVE money...eg. the Koch's, the Walton's, etc. start paying living wages and start paying their fair share in taxes.   

The little people have never tried to overpowered the government and the rich in North America. While the rich and the government have had military backing them, I wouldn't count on them when you have done nothing to protect your veterans when they come home.

The United States of America has had a civil war, yes, but it has never had a revolution like England, France, Russia, etc have. You keep hearing how the little pee-ons out number the rich, you keep seeing the damage that happens when one white cop kills a black teenager. 

What is going to happen when Wal-mart employees do not get those raises? What is going to happen when your Republican government gives the rich more power, more tax breaks and taxes the hell out of the pee-ons? It is a pot waiting to boil over.

And Mr. Harper, what is Canada going to do? You are sending Canada down this same path by allowing the rich tax breaks and leaving the poor with nothing? Are we going to head down this road as well or are you going to stop it now and start taking a good look at countries like Norway who have set an example on how to treat the little people and make the changes that need to be made before it is too late?

Good Luck.