San Diego- minimum wage going to $11.50 by 2017

[kpete]

SD minimum wage going to $11.50 by 2017
Council opts for ordinance over ballot measure in 6-3 vote

SAN DIEGO — Thousands of San Diego workers got a big pay raise Monday night from the City Council, which voted 6-3 along party lines to increase the city’s minimum wage to $11.50 an hour by January 2017.

The council considered presenting the wage hike to voters for approval in November, but decided to move forward with an ordinance instead.

Supporters of raising the minimum wage, including all six of the council’s Democrats, said it will help local business by boosting the buying power of many thousands of low-wage workers. They also say it’s not acceptable that people working full-time can’t afford the basics in San Diego.


http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jul/14/san-diego-minimum-wage-/

[tularetom]

1. In San Diego, twice that wouldn't be enough to "afford the basics"

But it's a start.

[Dawgs]

2. 46K/year is not enough to "afford the basics"?

Really?

[tularetom]

3. The median home price in SD is $494k

The median rent is over $2,000 per month. That'd be more than half of the $46 k.

http://www.zillow.com/san-diego-ca/home-values/

I'd say a roof over your head is pretty basic.

[Dawgs]

4. Actually, the AVERAGE rent for an apartment in San Diego is around $1500.

And, average means that there are many places that cost less.

http://www.deptofnumbers.com/rent/california/san-diego/
http://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-san-diego-rent-trends/

I'm not saying that the minimum wage doesn't need to be much higher, like closer to $15, but saying it needs to be $23 right now is a little bit ridiculous.

[tularetom]

5. Where in my post did I say it needed to be $23 right now?

I sure as hell can't find that. All I said was that $23 per hour wasn't enough to "afford the basics". That's a pretty vague expression but even at an average apartment rent of $1500 per month your rent is 40% of your gross income.

I assume you understand the difference between "average" and "median" prices.

[Dawgs]

7. Well, since you said it needs to be $23 and you're referencing current prices then..

..why wouldn't I assume that you think it should be that way now?

The problem with your "median" number is that you used Zillow's numbers for a specific part of San Diego.. obviously the most expensive. I used the "average" which is within 10 miles of San Diego.. a much better number. You having a problem with my math versus yours has nothing to do with "average" versus "median".

[haele]

8. Actually Average for July is $1650. For 800 sq-ft no pets in a depressed area.

http://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-san-diego-rent-trends/

Even with your $1500 a month apartment, this is the price for the type of apartments that are slapped up huddled together on top of each other, or are elderly and have undergone minimal maintenance, where walls and doors are thin and the wiring, plumbing, and HVAC is spotty at best, and the list of rules for which you can be kicked out for never seem to be followed by the majority of your neighbors. The type where the most of the machines in the laundry room are always out of order, one or two outdoor lights are always out, and the maintenance man fixes everything with spackle, liquid weld or duct tape when he finally gets out to look at your problem.
$1500 a month gets you the quality of apartment management in which you can expect just to give up on ever getting your security deposit back for, no matter how many pre-move-in condition pictures you take, because it's more expensive to take them to small claims to get that $500 you might be legally entitled to after they bill for cleaning back. And even if you brought in a professional move-out cleaner, you'll still be charged for cleaning and "replacement" of items that should have been covered under normal wear and tear.

These apartments are usually big enough for a family of three, a bit cramped for a family of 4. But if you don't mind the occasional gunshot, loud neighbors, and sirens going by every couple nights, they're probably okay.

The problem most people miss in San Diego is that the cost of living is high across the board even in the poor areas. It's called the "Sunshine Tax".

Food - I coupon and sale shop at the Commissary for the two of us and I cook at home and serve plenty of salads, vegetables, and quick, cheap meals - and even with two, it ends up costing least $500 a month, which is pretty much the same I would spend if I shopped at the dollar and discount food stores.

The average water bill for an apartment (including sewage) with two people is $60 to $80 a month - though they usually bill every other month, so you have to come up with between $120 and $160 every other month. There are also minimum surcharges, so a water bill will never be less than $40 a month - and that's just for flushing the toilet and brushing your teeth.

The average gas and electric bill for a 2 bedroom/1 bath apartment without A/C is $85 a month. The average electric bill with A/C is $105 a month. Because of surcharges, a 1 bedroom or studio is not much less, and if you're all electric, it's actually higher than a 2 bedroom with gas.

Cheapest family cell phone plan - average about $25.00 per person. Talk and text
Internet - well, you can get a smart-phone plan with data (internet access) for $45, but - the library is free.

A transit pass is $72 a month for trolley and bus, $100 a month for the "rapid" commuter service and $120 a month for the Coaster. But, taking transit also takes time because San Diego is comprised of small bedroom communities and business areas separated by mesas and steep fingerling canyons that are linked together with major roads and freeways; most people cannot afford to live within walking distance to their work because of the steep fingerling canyons that break up narrow residential streets into cul-de-sacs every half mile or so, so they usually drive, bike (if they're lucky and there's a bike lane marked on the streets) or take the transit.
Taking the bus or the trolley means that the average person usually has a one to two hour commute - even if they live three to five miles away from their work as the crow flies. Most people would prefer their own vehicles, which usually cut down the travel time to 15 minutes. But then, good bikes that can handle the hills aren't cheap, and regular unleaded has run between $3.75 and $4.25 over the past three years, so for the minimum wage workers - the caretakers, housekeepers, day laborers, and students it's usually transit.

Medical is subsidized, but there's still co-pays and deductibles. With one kid and no problems, just the regular medical costs average around $25 or so a month.

Now for actual case estimates. I'm going to give my wage earners in these examples $0.50 above minimum wage just because they're not your just out of high-school McD's workers - they'll be caretakers, drivers, security guards, or semi-skilled day laborers - the average workforce for most jobs that are available.

Family of three, two wage earners:
If between their jobs with a family of 3, each near minimum wage earner in a family made on average $9.50 an hour for 32 hours work, they each bring home $275 a week (32 hours minimum wage minus federal/state taxes and SS/FICA). Total of $550 a week, or $2200 a 4 week month.
Take away:
$1500 - Rent
$60 - Water
$85 - Gas and Electric, (no A/C)
$25 - One Phone
Leaves the family of three with:
$505 for food, transit, and medical a month.
Not included: Day Care. Clothes. Sanitary and Cleaning items. User fees.

Single Worker - lives alone
A single near minimum wage worker who works on average 50 hours a week on a good week (between various jobs) can expect to take home up to $419 a week. $275 a week if they have a bad week, so let's average that at $375 a week for $1500 a month.
The average for an 1 bedroom apartment is around $1300, studio is around $1000
So, someone living on their own in a Studio Apartment (all electric):
$1000 - Rent
$50 - Water
$75 - Electric (being generous - s/he's got LED lighting)
$25 - One phone

So, the typical single worker is usually left with $350 for food, transit, and medical at the end of the month.

Pretty tight. And the cost of new leases are rising; we just moved out from under 3 years of a rental lease; it began at $1395 a month in 2011 and was set to go up to $1625 on October 1st - for a 3 bedroom, 1 bath house near one of the most dangerous 'hood street-corners in town, where the house was in desperate need of foundation and roof renovation and the wiring needed replacing. We could get cheaper out in the county (your "10 miles away" is cheaper answer) but the cost for commute to my job, even with a transit pass, would cost more to our family in time and quality of life than staying in the city would.

The only reason we aren't crying about how hard it is to live on $20 an hour at that house is that we were lucky enough were able to find an "as-is" double-wide before it was listed that we could afford to buy and renovate that was in a stable family-owned mobile home park that we could also afford the lot rentals on. We "won the lottery" on that house.

BTW, in San Diego, even mobile home park lot rentals average around $800 a month. Between Mello-Roos fees or city or county lease fees for the land some of these parks are located on - while you might be able to afford that 1970's 1200 sq.ft double wide at $40K, the lot rental is $1500 a month and will go up 2% every year to pay for fire and ambulance service.

Just some of the cost of living in a county where the weather is really nice and there are a lot of opportunities for skill-set specific jobs that trap many people who aren't wealthy enough to live and thrive here.

Haele

[Dawgs]

9. One of the links I used showed that it was lower than $1500.

And it's just not realistic to think that the minimum wage could be changed from the high single digits to the low twenties.

I'm not saying that it doesn't NEED TO BE THERE, but if we're going to get anywhere on certain issues, we need to at least be realistic. And when making an argument we need to use unskewed numbers.

[haele]

10. Probably a link from 2013. House prices and rents have gone up 30% in the past 6 months...

And that's across the board throughout the county.

I understand that in most locations around the country, $20 an hour is enough to live pretty good - heck, if I was making that and living in Omaha, Huntsville or San Antonio - or even in Spokane or one of the suburbs of Portland, I could easily afford to buy a small house, maybe make payments on at least one sensible car, and send my grandkid to Montessori pre-school, but...

This is a location cost of living issue.

Here's what I was trying to point out about the "minimum wage living in San Diego" situation, that I am very familiar with, as I live and work in the city of San Diego, along with my disabled spouse, my occasionally employed stepdaughter, her now-husband who makes minimum wage at a family business and their child who occasionally live with us when they're not living off his family. I have lived in the county, and have recently been looking up to 20 miles out in our housing search, so I'm familiar with the cost of living as far out as the local MTS goes.

I'm also former military working as a contractor on base, so I'm very aware about the COLA additions that are made to base salaries that national and international companies give to people they want to keep on their payrolls just to work in this town.

Okay now:
Making $20 an hour for a 40 hour week in San Diego County is the equivalent of making $13 - $17 an hour in most locations in the United States - even comparing to some of the smaller southern Cailfornia towns a hunderd miles or so away. Working for a living on average in Los Angeles is actually cheaper than living in San Diego, partially because they have rent control.
It's just like making $30 an hour or so in New York City is the equivalent of making $13 - $17 an hour elsewhere. It's above minimum wage, and it will get you by for most expenses you're going to face on a day to day basis.

There's always a cost associated with living in a location where all the "beautiful people" like to hang out.

When the Federal Government hires full time in San Diego county, they include a cost of living increase of a minimum of $10K a year to the base wage of a lower level (think GS-5 to GS-7 clerk or caretaker) job. The GS-13/15 types I work with get up to a $30K cost of living variance. The VHA for the Military - the Variable Housing Allowance - is an additional $1000 a month for an unmarried E-4.

My supervisor is provided with a $50K a year variance on top of her six-figure salary, because she has to do executive functions for the company. I get a $15K a year variance above someone in my position who would be working in Virginia would just to be able to live "comfortably" enough that I won't become a security risk.

Those households with an income of the median wage of $45K are far worse off- treading water for the most part, figuring out which bills they are going to pay that month. My working neighbors at the old rental neighborhood who weren't military (with the housing subsidy) were all struggling, and were basically one paycheck away from eviction or economic disaster if something happened. And too many of them were living off payday loans and credit cards to carry them over the rough patches. They survive, but they can't get ahead.

Now, this all being said - what should 32 - 40 hours a week at a minimum wage be able to get one person?

Housing? - figure what the average rent for one bedroom or studio
Utilities? - figure what the average cost of water, gas and electric for a location for one bedroom or studio.
Communication? - Cell phone? (well, there are subsidized cell phones for low income, right?)
Food? - average cost for three or four meals that can give one normal calories/vitamins/mineral/protein nutrition per day.
Transportation? - cost for local transit pass
Sanitation? - average sanitation and cleaning materials costs for a month.

Decide what minimum wage should be able to pay for, break down how much these items cost in a location, and that should give you a baseline for a minimum wage.
Yes, some things on the list above can be subsidized, but between regulations and the waiting list to get some of these subsidies (specifically housing), there are a lot of minimum wage workers out there who do not qualify for them.


Haele (BTW, today I'm waiting on my spouse to finish some medical tests, so I'm off work today. Thank goodness for paid sick days!)

[Tuesday Afternoon]

6. itty bitty carrot for a very skinny mule.