Bored Panda works better on our iPhone app

Continue in app Continue in browser

User submission

65.9K

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

ADVERTISEMENT

In the current post-pandemic times, more and more businesses are reopening their doors, and job openings are accelerating faster than people can send in their job applications.

Many reasons can be blamed for staff shortages, from parents not having anywhere to leave their homeschooled children, to others who are worried about catching the virus, while the rest are satisfied with benefit expansions.

So to attract more applicants to keep up with a new wave of customers as the restrictions ease, restaurants and stores in the US are now hiking wages. McDonald’s, Sheetz, and Chipotle are just some of the latest companies to follow Amazon, Walmart, and Costco in boosting wages to $15 an hour or even higher. It sparked a discussion on Twitter with people posting job ads that show “they can afford to pay you.”

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: derenicbyrd

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: DerenicByrd

The race to find an employee, let alone a talented one, has become a real headache for many businesses, both retail and catering, as the job market is being torn by increased customer flow amid vaccinations and a labor shortage.

ADVERTISEMENT

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: DerenicByrd

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: DerenicByrd

So companies like McDonalds and Amazon, which are not usually associated with good pay and working conditions, are now forced to step up a little and pay more per hour.

For example, on Thursday, McDonalds reported that it will raise hourly wages “by an average of 10%” for more than 36,500 employees at more than 660 company-operated US restaurants. This will make an entry-level job come in at $11-$17 an hour. Meanwhile, shift managers can expect their wage to increase to somewhere around $15 to $20 an hour to start.

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: DerenicByrd

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

ADVERTISEMENT

Image credits: DerenicByrd

On the same occasion, Amazon has announced it will be hiring 75,000 workers for its warehouse and delivery placements in the US and Canada. The company is now offering an average starting pay of $17 per hour, plus it will pay new warehouse and delivery workers a $100 bonus if they show a covid-19 vaccination card.

Chipotle has also said on Monday it will be raising its average hourly rage to $15. The package will include employee referral bonuses of $200 for restaurant workers and $750 for general managers.

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: DerenicByrd

ADVERTISEMENT

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: DerenicByrd

Josh Bivens, a research director at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, told AP News that “Customers are coming back faster than restaurants can staff up. By raising pay, they are able to get more workers in the door.”

Here’s what people had to say in response to this thread

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

ADVERTISEMENT

Image credits: mme_diva

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: Kon__K

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: Ray6497

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: ExtremelyBi01

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: phil_luttazi

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: GreaterLegion

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: StormnNorman24

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

ADVERTISEMENT

Image credits: Bashton_FL

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: CamBlurn

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: crkeller39

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: Uhmanda_Brown

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: SuePBC65

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: AndersonGray1

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: Char20205

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

ADVERTISEMENT

Image credits: Cehyienza

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: mgr4463

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: jaykevin62

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: iRadinVerse

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: inkedpenguin

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: Marilyn97954943

Restaurants And Stores In The US Are Finally Starting To Raise Salaries And People Share Their Thoughts On It

Image credits: SeeksMaria

ADVERTISEMENT

66Kviews

Denis Tymulis

Denis is a photo editor at Bored Panda. After getting his bachelor's degree in Multimedia and Computer Design, he tried to succeed in digital design, advertising, and branding. Also, Denis really enjoys sports and loves everything related to board sports and water.

Denis is a photo editor at Bored Panda. After getting his bachelor's degree in Multimedia and Computer Design, he tried to succeed in digital design, advertising, and branding. Also, Denis really enjoys sports and loves everything related to board sports and water.

Liucija Adomaite

Liucija Adomaite is a creative mind with years of experience in copywriting. She has a dynamic set of experiences from advertising, academia, and journalism. This time, she has set out on a journey to investigate the ways in which we communicate ideas on a large scale. Her current mission is to find a magic formula for how to make ideas, news, and other such things spread like a virus.

Liucija Adomaite is a creative mind with years of experience in copywriting. She has a dynamic set of experiences from advertising, academia, and journalism. This time, she has set out on a journey to investigate the ways in which we communicate ideas on a large scale. Her current mission is to find a magic formula for how to make ideas, news, and other such things spread like a virus.

What do you think ?

AG 3 years ago

I love all these people saying "get an education." That costs money. If you have no financial assistance, how are you going to afford your education? And student loans are so predatory I can understand why people want to avoid them at all costs. People need to change their mindset that minimum wage jobs are just for teens, they are for everyone. McD's can't run on 16 year olds alone!

53points

King Joffrey 3 years ago

Exactly! Also, not everyone is intellectually capable of getting a degree. We can't all be lawyers and doctors, we also need cleaners and factory workers and these people deserve to be able to feed their families and put a roof over their heads.

35points

Load More Replies...

M O'Connell 3 years ago

Plus there is such a thing as an excess of education, as many jobs don't actually require it! I have a bachelors degree, but the job that I've been working at for years really only needs an associates, and you could probably get by with a high school diploma and a year of community college.

5points

Meami 3 years ago

Not only that, but maybe that teenager (and we all know that many, many McD workers are not teenagers) will be able to save toward their college tuition. We are also a culture of consumers in this country. We want more for less instead of fixing what we have or making what we have work. Maybe if people were paid more and stuff was more expensive, we'd think twice about buying stuff that will just end up in the landfill.

1point

N G 3 years ago

Something occurred to me as I was reading this - the argument about cost of living. The example given quotes rental rates. They're on a supply and demand basis too - and often landlords can (and do) raise rents more to line their pockets than to cover their expenses and make a modest profit (let's face it, no landlord does it to break even). It becomes a vicious cycle - landlords work out that their tenants are earning more, so they up their rent to take more from them, pushing out potential new renters, who need to demand a higher living wage to have somewhere affordable to live. The system is broken all the way through. And the argument that this will break other small businesses - it is a cost of doing business to pay your staff sufficiently. That may mean raising your prices, or it may mean your business is no longer viable. But to keep paying a pittance just to keep your business going should never be an option.

16points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago (edited)

You’re so so so so so so so so soooooooo wrong about landlords it’s not even funny. There are legitimately thousands if not millions of landlords who do it just to break even, or less. That way their mortgage is paid. Many aren’t even close to earning a real profit from rentals unless they have multiples. Only the slumlords and the landlords of nicer pricier places make a livable profit. Rent costs what the market bears, like most other things. Landlords require you to make 3x the rent. Once they know that, not a single landlord is sitting there calculating your wages. Man unchecked and unregulated capitalism makes some of you really fall into paranoid delusions. Anyway. The small business workaround is just to pay people under the table or pay them more. Either will do.

0points

Load More Replies...

Natalie Oleander 3 years ago

I made more (including benefits) working as a janitor than I did using my degree. And I barely made ends meet with either. Stop accepting garbage pay. We deserve to live not just survive from our meager wages.

10points

King Joffrey 3 years ago

I work in a job that pays about twice what my degree-specific profession would pay. The job doesn't draw on anything I learnt in my studies (you can train almost anyone to do it) but the business wouldn't hire anyone without a degree.

1point

Load More Replies...

Load More Comments

AG 3 years ago

I love all these people saying "get an education." That costs money. If you have no financial assistance, how are you going to afford your education? And student loans are so predatory I can understand why people want to avoid them at all costs. People need to change their mindset that minimum wage jobs are just for teens, they are for everyone. McD's can't run on 16 year olds alone!

53points

King Joffrey 3 years ago

Exactly! Also, not everyone is intellectually capable of getting a degree. We can't all be lawyers and doctors, we also need cleaners and factory workers and these people deserve to be able to feed their families and put a roof over their heads.

35points

Load More Replies...

M O'Connell 3 years ago

Plus there is such a thing as an excess of education, as many jobs don't actually require it! I have a bachelors degree, but the job that I've been working at for years really only needs an associates, and you could probably get by with a high school diploma and a year of community college.

5points

Meami 3 years ago

Not only that, but maybe that teenager (and we all know that many, many McD workers are not teenagers) will be able to save toward their college tuition. We are also a culture of consumers in this country. We want more for less instead of fixing what we have or making what we have work. Maybe if people were paid more and stuff was more expensive, we'd think twice about buying stuff that will just end up in the landfill.

1point

N G 3 years ago

Something occurred to me as I was reading this - the argument about cost of living. The example given quotes rental rates. They're on a supply and demand basis too - and often landlords can (and do) raise rents more to line their pockets than to cover their expenses and make a modest profit (let's face it, no landlord does it to break even). It becomes a vicious cycle - landlords work out that their tenants are earning more, so they up their rent to take more from them, pushing out potential new renters, who need to demand a higher living wage to have somewhere affordable to live. The system is broken all the way through. And the argument that this will break other small businesses - it is a cost of doing business to pay your staff sufficiently. That may mean raising your prices, or it may mean your business is no longer viable. But to keep paying a pittance just to keep your business going should never be an option.

16points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago (edited)

You’re so so so so so so so so soooooooo wrong about landlords it’s not even funny. There are legitimately thousands if not millions of landlords who do it just to break even, or less. That way their mortgage is paid. Many aren’t even close to earning a real profit from rentals unless they have multiples. Only the slumlords and the landlords of nicer pricier places make a livable profit. Rent costs what the market bears, like most other things. Landlords require you to make 3x the rent. Once they know that, not a single landlord is sitting there calculating your wages. Man unchecked and unregulated capitalism makes some of you really fall into paranoid delusions. Anyway. The small business workaround is just to pay people under the table or pay them more. Either will do.

0points

Load More Replies...

Natalie Oleander 3 years ago

I made more (including benefits) working as a janitor than I did using my degree. And I barely made ends meet with either. Stop accepting garbage pay. We deserve to live not just survive from our meager wages.

10points

King Joffrey 3 years ago

I work in a job that pays about twice what my degree-specific profession would pay. The job doesn't draw on anything I learnt in my studies (you can train almost anyone to do it) but the business wouldn't hire anyone without a degree.

1point

Load More Replies...

Load More Comments

Back to Homepage

More about Social Issues

Next in Social Issues

Related on Bored Panda

Related on Bored Panda

Trending on Bored Panda

Also on Bored Panda