Seriously, did anyone see this coming?
(The Blaze) Target announced two years ago that it would raise the companywide minimum wage to $15 per hour by the end of 2020, winning plaudits from progressives and advocates for an increased minimum wage.
Now, with just one year before Target is scheduled to hit the magic $15 mark ($13Â is the current minimum wage), it turns out that raising the minimum wage has impacted many Target employees in the exact way that opponents of mandatory minimum wage increases predict.
CNN Business spoke to numerous current and former Target employees who revealed their hours at the retail giant have been cut since Target announced its push to increase the store’s minimum wage, which for many employees means they lose their health insurance benefits. Target offers health benefits to employees who work more than 30 hours per week.
One employee, Heather, told CNN that when her hourly pay rate increased, management cut her total work hours.
“I got that dollar raise but I’m getting $200 less in my paycheck,” she said. “I have no idea how I’m going to pay rent or buy food.”
Other employees, Caren and Michael, told CNN their hours were cut substantially. Caren said she lost her health insurance — forcing her to quit her job — while Michael has had to pick up a side job just to make ends meet.
There are two choices when raising wages in a situation like this: cut hours or increase prices. Start raising prices and people go elsewhere.
One of the reason hours are being cut is the development of retail automation, namely in the form of the self-checkout line.
“They really cut those hours back from them with the introduction of self-checkout,” a former store director told CNN.
Automation has no salary. It has a cost, but, over time, that cost is less than that of multiple employees. And, as the article points out, Target is hiring a lot more people, mostly part time, since they do not get benefits, which is a big cost savings for Target.
There’s a price to be paid for being Woke. Target was happy to be all Woke when they raised the wage. See, there’s a third choice when companies do this: take it on the chin in terms of profit. Most aren’t willing to do that, though.
