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Beware the $15 minimum wage for menial labor — it’ll eventually come back to bite you in the hindquarters.
As wages for fast-food workers continue to spiral upwards, hamburger chain Wendy’s is fast-replacing human workers with automation.
The company announced this week that by the second half of the year, ordering will be available through the use of self-service kiosks throughout its entire 6,000 locations, according to Investors Business Daily.
It will be up to each franchisee whether to use the new technology or to stick with the old system. Wendy’s President Todd Penegor observed that some locations have already raised their prices to meet increased labor costs.
IBD reported:
“It’s not surprising that some franchisees might face more of a labor-cost squeeze than company restaurants. All 258 Wendy’s restaurants in California, where the minimum wage rose to $10 an hour this year and will gradually rise to $15, are franchise-operated. Likewise, about 75% of 200-plus restaurants in New York are run by franchisees. New York’s fast-food industry wage rose to $10.50 in New York City and $9.75 in the rest of the state at the start of 2016, also on the way to $15.”
In order to curry favor with voters, politicians from both sides of the aisle have called for raising the minimum wage.
Sen. Bernie Sanders favors a $15 minimum wage — as a starting point. Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton has, at various times, suggested raising it to $10 an hour and on other occasions higher.
Even presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said he’s open to the notion of raising the wage.
Investor’s Business Daily News Editor Ed Carson tweeted:
Wendy's will make self-order kiosks available nationwide as minimum wage hikes hit https://t.co/rocv9mQzii $WEN $MCD pic.twitter.com/XgiPydYKWy
— Ed Carson (@IBD_ECarson) May 11, 2016
Fiscal conservatives weren’t surprised — the mere idea of a minimum wage runs counter to basic economic principles. It’s more efficient to let the market determine prices and wages, which would vary from one area of the country to the next.
They even saw advantages beyond the obvious cost-savings.
@IBD_ECarson @KazeSkyz Well, there u have it.Smart people were telling the dummies all along that this will backfire & kill jobs. Vindicated
— Nj2 (@KauaiNj) May 11, 2016
.@IBD_ECarson @benshapiro finally. I'm sick of entitled welfare queens giving me an attitude when I request "without cheese" ?
— Right Wing Raven (@KazeSkyz) May 11, 2016
@KauaiNj I bet the machines will speak clear English. Nothing more annoying than trying to order food and they speak broken English
— Trump Is The Nominee (@joejaegerguitar) May 11, 2016
@IBD_ECarson Wawa stores already have them. They are great and avoid mixups. Nobody's worth $15 an hour to push buttons with pics of burgers
— rockmom (@rockmom) May 11, 2016
@IBD_ECarson That was predictable. Enjoy your dream of a higher minimum wages as you stand in the unemployment line. #dumb
— Steve Buckland (@SteveBuckland4) May 11, 2016
And why stop with ordering? What about production?
@IBD_ECarson I got your $15/hour right here… pic.twitter.com/210FBnnLCg
— #shitlord (@dorout1) May 11, 2016
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Clip via KCAL.
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