Fiat/Chrysler won't build cars in the US anymore

[theraif]

my issue with any thing new is all the extra junk i`d be happy with a new dodge with a hemi 6 speed tilt cruz and power windows thats it , some day i`ll get a dodge magnum wagon rip out all that useless stuff and have a nice 360 old school

[Richard Bartrop]

Actually, it was Henry Ford's desire to reduce the simply awful turnover rate at Ford.   The $5 day did do that--pretty well documented BTW.  It did have the additional benefit of being the start of the movement of factory workers into the middle class, income-wise as well.

Oh yes, regardless of whatever Henry Ford's motivation, more money was good for the workers, and workers with more money in their pockets was good for everyone.

Something that seems to get overlooked int he currently debate about minimum wage is the potential benefit to business of a whole new class of workers having extra cash to spend.

[SfanGoch]

Paying somebody 15 bucks per hour to get your order wrong at the local fast food chain isn't a benefit. Minimum wage jobs, combined with taking advantage of education (staying in school and actually learning something) should be a stepping stone and an incentive to a better job, not as a way of permanently supporting yourself and your family; or, because you don't have to stress the gray matter between your ears. 

[Art Anderson]

Oh yes, regardless of whatever Henry Ford's motivation, more money was good for the workers, and workers with more money in their pockets was good for everyone.

Something that seems to get overlooked int he currently debate about minimum wage is the potential benefit to business of a whole new class of workers having extra cash to spend.

An interesting side to the $5 day is that other automakers in Detroit had to either try and match it (at least to some extent), or face the same turnover expenses that Ford was trying to cut.

[Ace-Garageguy]

Paying somebody 15 bucks per hour to get your order wrong at the local fast food chain isn't a benefit. Minimum wage jobs, combined with taking advantage of education (staying in school and actually learning something) should be a stepping stone and an incentive to a better job, not as a way of permanently supporting yourself and your family; or, because you don't have to stress the gray matter between your ears. 

Draft this man to be Secretary of Education. 

[Jim N]

Believe it or not, we are still the world’s largest manufacturing country.  The reason we don’t see it is because these companies do not make the things we buy.  Companies like Boeing, Caterpillar and Deere are very big here and in the export markets.  While these are manufacturing jobs, they require a skilled labor force to do the jobs.

Having stated that here is the rub.  The benefit of having a broad manufacturing base is that it allows our under educated and uneducated population an opportunity to live a middle class lifestyle and put their kids in college, which allows inter-generational progress.  This is what has made this country the powerhouse it has been for a lot of its history.  The other problem that is compounded by not having a broad based manufacturing sector is that if we look at the high school graduation rates in many parts of this country, it is appalling.  We have large cities where the graduation rates are well under 50%.  This in turn leads to a large number of people who have little to no skills and cannot find jobs that will help them move up the economic ladder.

The move toward the economy we have now started in the 1950’s.  It gained some traction in the 70’s and then took off in the 90’s.  The economy we have now is what a lot of people feared would happen, but our elites told us that all would be fine.  Well most of us now know it is not fine.  Our standard of living has been in decline for almost 20 years.  The median wage in this country in 1999 was around $60,000.00 and the last measurement I saw it is in the $52 - $53,000.00 range.  This data might be a year or two old.  But one cannot say we have much improvement when our labor participation rate is stubbornly stuck at about 62%

The sad part is that I am not sure we have the will as a country to turn this around.  Neither political party has the stomach for the effort it will take, nor am I  sure the public can find the necessary common ground to force the required change based on how divided the country is.

[SfanGoch]

Free stuff, and promises of more, paid with money from other people's pockets has destroyed personal initiative and the incentive to succeed on one's own.