if there is no reproduction, you (or your company) would not get customers, pal.
US system regarding paid leave for women is not optimal.
Same with legal $2.79/hr under-minimal wage for the restaurant workers.
See, now that is an unfair portrayal of the compensation packages of wait staff & bartenders. First of all, if the $2.79/hr wage was a serious problem, they would not be able to keep enough staff to keep the doors open. Second, as one who started out in the restaurant business 25 years ago, I can tell you... there's not much out there that will beat a job that sends you home every night with free dinner, and $75-$125 cash in your pocket. At 17, 18, & 19 with no degree, no special skills, and no resume, being able to make $800+ per week cash money off of tips and mileage (pizza delivery, $3.50/hr plus $0.15/mile and 100% of tips) Minimum wage was $5.85/hr but I was doing OK! Ended up leaving that job to work 3rd shift full-time in a grocery store. Even though I had a family member in management that got me in the door at their top payrate, I was still making about 20% less than my below minimum wage restaurant job. Only reason I took it was because it came w/ health insurance and being 3rd shift, it allowed me to finish my education during the day.
Low base salaries is the cause of many problems here.
In addition, in US (at least in some states, including Texas) it is easy for an employer to essentially steal someone's wages.
Example: you are working part time and was supposed to work on a particular day during certain hours. You come and one hour later the boss tells you-we don't have enough customers today, why don't you go home. Obviously, they are not paying you a wage for the time that you were not there. It does not happen in all of US, only some states.
I was not in this situation, but some of my children were and it infuriated the heck out of me.
Employment and wages are an ongoing negotiation between the employees & the employer. A) If the employer does not have enough hours to offer, that unexpected time off should be devoted to finding more secure employment. B) In my experience, when business is slow and I'm over staffed, it's not the employees that have proven to be the most productive and reliable that I send home. Those employees get as many hours as I can give them even though they are probably paid a little higher wage. They are the valuable ones that I want to keep! It's the less productive employees that often spend their time complaining about being slow rather than using the downtime to do things that just can't be kept up with during a rush. (folding napkins, scrubbing the bottoms of tables, rotating the cooler and tossing out expired produce) These are the minimum wage earners that really aren't worth the wages they take. That's why I send them home first, and wouldn't be overly concerned if they ended up finding another job.
Same happens with part time workers at my place of work-they are not being paid for obligatory training hours and even days, for example.
One day there will be a class action lawsuit about this, I am sure.
Obligatory Training time is on the clock and should be reimbursed at regular pay rate (in all states I'm familiar with anyway) Employers that break the law should be reported to the labor board and charged accordingly. Law breakers don't represent a problem with the system, it represents a problem with morality and enforcement. Now optional self paced training videos and online courses is a different matter. These are often offered as free resources to advance your career potential and although not always directly reimbursed, for the "go getter" they nearly always pay off in the long run.
I have been advertising an entry level $18/hr part time job with on job training and clear growth potential to become a full time career for the right candidate. The position has been open for 18 months, and last week I got my first resume in over 6 months. After a short interview I hired the candidate at $18/hr even though he has no formal education or training.
We don't have a shortage of entry level jobs offering quick advancement beyond PT minimum wage. What we have is a shortage of self driven workers with the moral character & work ethic to succeed.