11/03/2025
My morning discussion with Gemini AI:
Note: My apologies for the long post but it's well worth it.
I said, "There's been talk for awhile now that the National Minimum Wage should be raised. Senator Bernie Sanders wants a 'livable wage', somewhere in the area of $20 to $25 dollars an hour. But, here's my thought. Pay For Valued Experience verses Pay For Skilled/Unskilled Labor. Valued pay for experience or just the current 'slave wages' at the current rate? My question to you is, who would benefit from 'Pay for Valued Experienced'? The Minimum Wage is not even at the level where people CAN live affordably and comfortably. Would a Fair Market Living Wage, per region, PLUS Pay for Valued Experience work better than a 'minimum wage'?"
Gemini AI Replied:
This is a thoughtful question that touches on several key debates about compensation and economic well-being. The concept of "Pay for Valued Experience" and a "Fair Market Living Wage per Region" represents a departure from the traditional national minimum wage model.
Here is a breakdown of who would likely benefit from "Pay for Valued Experience" and an analysis of your proposed model.
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# # # **Who Would Benefit from 'Pay for Valued Experience'?**
"Pay for Valued Experience" (often related to merit-based, skill-based, or pay-for-performance compensation models) primarily benefits two key groups:
# # # # **1. Employees with Proven Skills and Experience**
* **Experienced Workers:** This model directly rewards employees who have demonstrated competence, acquired specialized skills, or have a long track record of success. It provides a path for wages to rise above a flat minimum based on their tangible contributions.
* **High-Performing Employees:** Workers who consistently exceed expectations, improve efficiency, or take on greater responsibilities would receive better compensation. This incentivizes **continuous improvement** and higher productivity.
* **Employees in Roles with High Turnover:** If an employer values the stability and institutional knowledge that comes with experience, they can use this pay model to boost retention. Long-term employees, who save the company money on recruitment and training, would be rewarded.
* **Skilled/Specialized Labor:** Workers in fields that require specific, hard-to-find skills (even if the job itself might be considered "labor") would command a higher rate based on the value of their unique expertise.
# # # # **2. Employers**
* **Increased Productivity and Efficiency:** By linking pay directly to performance and valuable experience, businesses can create a highly motivated and productive workforce.
* **Better Talent Acquisition and Retention:** Offering competitive pay tied to experience helps a company attract top talent who want their efforts and skills to be reflected in their paycheck. It also reduces costly employee turnover.
* **Clearer Performance Alignment:** It forces employers to clearly define what "valued experience" or "high performance" means, aligning employee efforts with specific business goals.
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# # # **Analyzing Your Proposed Model: Fair Market Living Wage (Per Region) PLUS Pay for Valued Experience**
Your proposal to combine a regional "Fair Market Living Wage" floor with "Pay for Valued Experience" has several theoretical advantages over a single, national minimum wage:
# # # # **A. Fair Market Living Wage (Per Region)**
This component addresses the core issue of affordability and is supported by research into the cost of living differences across the country.
* **Benefits Workers in High Cost-of-Living Areas:** A national minimum wage often falls drastically short in expensive metropolitan areas, but is closer to a living wage in lower-cost areas. A regional living wage would ensure that a worker in New York City or San Francisco has a baseline wage floor that is significantly higher than a worker in a rural area, helping **all workers** meet basic needs.
* **Addresses Regional Economic Differences:** It acknowledges that the economic realities for businesses and workers vary widely.
* **Provides a True Social/Economic Floor:** A "living wage" is generally calculated based on the necessary costs for basic needs (housing, food, childcare, etc.) in a specific area, making it a more accurate measure of what people need to live **affordably and comfortably**, as you suggest.
# # # # **B. Combining the Two Models**
* **Establishes a Real Floor and an Incentive Ceiling:** The **Fair Market Living Wage** would serve as a compassionate, non-negotiable floor, ensuring that entry-level or unskilled workers can afford to live. The **Pay for Valued Experience** would then act as a vital incentive structure *above* that floor, rewarding merit and tenure.
* **Elevates All Wages:** By establishing a higher baseline (the living wage), the pay for experienced workers would also likely need to rise to maintain a meaningful differential, resulting in a general uplift across the wage distribution.
* **Potential for Greater Equity:** It aims to solve both the *adequacy* problem (current minimum wage is too low for living) and the *fairness* problem (skills and experience aren't adequately recognized at the low end of the wage scale).
# # # **Potential Challenges**
It's important to note that this model is not without potential trade-offs, which are often cited in economic discussions:
* **Complexity for Businesses:** Implementing and tracking a Fair Market Living Wage that is adjusted regionally and then layered with an experience/performance matrix would be significantly more complex than a single national minimum wage.
* **Impact on Entry-Level Employment:** While the goal is to provide a living wage, some economists argue that rapidly raising the wage floor, especially in lower-cost regions, could lead businesses to reduce hiring or automate low-skill jobs, though the extent of this effect is debated.
In summary, your proposed model aims to create a more equitable and functional compensation system by providing a **regionally-adjusted, livable base** for everyone, and a **merit-based incentive** for those who gain value-added experience.
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Would you like to explore the specific economic arguments for or against a regional minimum wage versus a national minimum wage?
