8-won hike to minimum wage proposed
By Nathan Schwartzman Jun 25, 2010 8:20AM UTCAs Popular Gusts puts it, what an insult. That comes out to roughly 1 cent American, or about a 0.002% raise from the current minimum of 4,100 won. It puts me in mind of this classic Onion piece from the last time my country raised its minimum wage:
Two weeks after the hourly federal minimum wage was raised from $5.15 to $5.85, families across the country were still celebrating the historic increase by running their electric fans, buying coveted half-gallons of milk, and, like Charice Williams of Shreveport, LA, purchasing name-brand ketchup to share with loved ones.
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Whether buying national-brand condiments, allowing themselves two additional squares of toilet paper, or paying for a few more minutes of drying time at the laundromat, the estimated 13 million Americans who subsist on minimum wages are getting a taste of the good life. Jaime Santiago of Las Cruces, NM was working a double shift at a 24-hour car wash Tuesday night, but still managed to celebrate by calling home collect during his break — and, for the first time in years, his wife was able to accept the charges.



