This week’s installment of Labour & Pop Culture is “Minimum Wage Strike” by David Rovics. The song moots what would happen if minimum-wage workers decided to withhold their labour en masse and, in doing so, highlights how prevalent low-wage work has become.
In 2015, about 300,000 of Alberta's 1.8 million non-managerial workers earn $15 an hour or less. That same year, in some US cities (such as Los Angles), half of workers earn less than $15 per hour. Over time, there has been growing momentum to bring the minimum wage up towards a living wage.
Alberta will hit the $15 target this fall. So far, the job losses catastrophized by conservative politicians and business groups have not materialized. This gives credence to supporters’ assertion that higher minimum wages stimulate the economy because they are almost immediately spent on necessities by low-wage workers.
When I awoke one mornin', there was a feelin' in the air
Everything was quiet, things were different everywhere
The Wobblies were back again with Joe Hill at the mic
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
There was no one pumpin' gasoline, no one drivin' from town to town
No one at the registers, all the highways were shut down
The cars were stuck in the garage, CEOs on bikes
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
There was no one flippin' burgers, all the grills were cold
Onion rings were in their bags, fries were growin' mold
There were no baristas at Starbucks askin', "How many shots would you like?"
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
The fruit was fallin' off the trees, no one to load the truck
Corn was rotting on the stalks, no farmhands to shuck
The Workfare workers were hangin' at home, spendin' the day with their tykes
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
Yuppie parents were housebound, their nannies left the job
Wal-Mart workers said, "Enough of our labor has been robbed"
The Foot Locker was locked up, the boss had to take a hike
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
When I awoke one mornin', there was a feelin' in the air
Everything was quiet, things were different everywhere
The Wobblies were back again with T-Bone at the mic
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike,
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
-- Bob Barnetson
The cars were stuck in the garage, CEOs on bikes
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
There was no one flippin' burgers, all the grills were cold
Onion rings were in their bags, fries were growin' mold
There were no baristas at Starbucks askin', "How many shots would you like?"
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
The fruit was fallin' off the trees, no one to load the truck
Corn was rotting on the stalks, no farmhands to shuck
The Workfare workers were hangin' at home, spendin' the day with their tykes
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
Yuppie parents were housebound, their nannies left the job
Wal-Mart workers said, "Enough of our labor has been robbed"
The Foot Locker was locked up, the boss had to take a hike
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
When I awoke one mornin', there was a feelin' in the air
Everything was quiet, things were different everywhere
The Wobblies were back again with T-Bone at the mic
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike,
When all the minimum wage workers went on strike
-- Bob Barnetson
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