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abjectwoe
May, 2025

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Who else makes $15 / hr?

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WinterStick
Posts: 234 - Karma: 100
I'm college educated person and in a job in which I use my degree. And I'm only getting paid $15 an hour. Janitors at McDonalds start at 10, so I want to know what kinds of shitty jobs are equivalent so I can gage how hard I work vs. how hard I should be working for such shitty pay.
13 years ago
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General_Ripper
Posts: 3327 - Karma: 189
So you are going to quit your job before you find a new one in a really tough job market.......not smart.

And never leave a job on a bad note it may bite you in the ass. You will need a good recommendation to land a high profile job.
13 years ago
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californiagrown
Posts: 9794 - Karma: 2,014
i have a few buds that graduated with me that are EE's. the lowest paid guy is $80/year and the highest is $105/year. i live in an area with a super high cost of living though.


You are an intern. suck it up, ball out for the probationary period and you will get picked up and salaried.


be thankful you have a job in your field. shit is rough out there yo.
13 years ago
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soulskier
Posts: 17806 - Karma: 3,841
what do they do with you during the off season?
13 years ago
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Saasha55
Posts: 11 - Karma: 10
I used to be a hostess at a local family owned restaurant, and I made 7.25 an hour plus tips, on a good night I'd get about 40 dollars in tips. So that averages out to about 15 dollars per hour, it was pretty nice
13 years ago
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Capernicus
Posts: 382 - Karma: 218
First of all, no one has asked, "what benefits do you get?".

If you are getting medical, vision, dental, paid vacation, sick leave..etc then making $15 is not horrible (depending on where you live). With that being said, coming from a fellow engineer, you are getting underpaid...unless you have been with this company for less than 6 months (and the plan is to increase your status).

If this is not true then get as much from the the job as you can and begin searching for another one.

And just to let everyone know, salary isn't everything. I rejected a job that paid $15k more than the one I currently have...but I am doing much more interesting work, live in a place where I can ski, and this job gives me an advantage when I'm applying to graduate school...so salary isn't everything. It depends on what your career goals are.
13 years ago
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Capernicus
Posts: 382 - Karma: 218
^ just realized you have been there for more than a year and worked on projects...

GET OUT OF THERE! 2 weeks notice time! BUT DON'T BURN BRIDGES!
13 years ago
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icon1234
Posts: 3081 - Karma: 1,474
OP that sucks man... I have a few friends in engineering, one of them CE makes like $18/hour just in his co-op, another is making around $35/hour in her co-op, and neither of them even have degree's yet. I'd start looking for another job.
13 years ago
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mehregan15
Posts: 780 - Karma: 753
quit bashing college, its a good fuckin time
13 years ago
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maximiliaan
Posts: 7711 - Karma: 2,857
i make 5,50 an hour and then i have to pay taxes over that shit.... damn i wish i followed college...
13 years ago
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WinterStick
Posts: 234 - Karma: 100
I wouldn't leave without finding another job first, but after hearing everyone's opinions, I am going to be looking for new jobs whenever I have any free time. And I will try not to burn the bridge, but I will very diplomatically tell them a few good reasons why all their employees hate their jobs.
13 years ago
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WinterStick
Posts: 234 - Karma: 100
That is damn good to know, your friends are doing something right! I aint no intern though, this is my full time, straight-from-college gig! But yes, it is true that I am a *little* bit grateful just for having a job.
13 years ago
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*Fujative*
Posts: 8554 - Karma: 183
Just landed a job today, making $23/hr at 40 years a week. So stoked!
13 years ago
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squibble
Posts: 4569 - Karma: 104
i have advice

quit

get a job at a well managed landscaping company and do it every summer. I was making 14$ @ 17

although i now hate my summer job, i dont ever have to look for a job. in fact my boss emails me right around now asking when id like to start.
13 years ago
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division.bell
Posts: 2762 - Karma: 1,906
Hot damn, and I thought my weeks took forever at work...
13 years ago
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annex_
Posts: 1659 - Karma: 1,499
pretty sure that's still illegal. there's a reason it's called minimum wage - what your employer pays you. making tips is essentially making commission, that you still have to tip out other staff throughout the restaurant. at my serving job i make 9.40$ an hour which is minimum wage + tips which range from 40-350 depending on the night.
my other job is 15$
and another job that i might be doing part time during christmas is 11$ + 13% commission
13 years ago
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annex_
Posts: 1659 - Karma: 1,499
sorry repost. but to clarify i am also a full time uni student and still in school. so post-grad jobs really don't apply in my sit.
13 years ago
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*Fujative*
Posts: 8554 - Karma: 183
Haha, opps, 40 hrs a week, not years. Opps.
13 years ago
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californiagrown
Posts: 9794 - Karma: 2,014
youre pretty darn ignorant arent you?
13 years ago
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RileyZap
Posts: 420 - Karma: 28
I'm 16, in high school and pulling almost $20-$25/hour doing delivery.
13 years ago
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straightlining
Posts: 239 - Karma: 140
wow, this thread makes me love living in a country where the minimum wage is $15.51.

But then again, things are really fuckin' expensive here. Like hideously expensive.
13 years ago
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annex_
Posts: 1659 - Karma: 1,499
you're telling me paying an employee 3.25$ is legal
13 years ago
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CassiusClay
Posts: 1757 - Karma: 2
First job out of undergrad I made about $30/hr. (on an 8 hr/day basis) though I was salaried and worked much more than 8 hour days as an equity analyst. Today I'm honestly not sure how much I make per hour, more than $30 though.

I'm surprised an electrical engineer is only making $15/hr. Keep grinding it out with the job and after a year ask for a raise. If they give you a good raise you are satisfied with, stick with the company. If they do not, start seeking new jobs but keep yours. Eventually the phone will ring and you'll have a new gig.
13 years ago
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baaangthat
Posts: 2245 - Karma: 2,587
bartender here...

i work at an upscale course in scottsdale, make 4.50$ hourly but average about $35/hr with tips on the shoulder season and close to 50/hr in the peak months (Jan-April) and im working about 60 hrs a week..I get reasonable health and dental benefits...have a degree in BA elementary education that im happy to ignore...my mother has a masters in ed. and has been teaching in NH for 35 years and im going to make about $5,000 more than her this year.
13 years ago
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howlongcanausern
Posts: 4982 - Karma: 1,737
i looooooove getting this question :)
13 years ago
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ImNotARacist
Posts: 5136 - Karma: -1,030
Idk what mcdonalds are around you but janitors start at minimum wage around here.



And as far as using your degree and only getting paid $15, you should have known how much you were probably going to make before you chose your major.


Again Idk where you live but $15/hr is more than enough to get you by here in Salt Lake City.
13 years ago
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SterlingArcher
Posts: 2200 - Karma: 2,456
$18/hr, four 10 hour days, paid weekly, my summer job. Some college credits but no degree.  however i am satisfied with this wage.
13 years ago
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act.resist
Posts: 8875 - Karma: 513
it is minimum wage, WITH TIPS

i work at outback steakhouse im pretty sure they learn up on there legal practices
13 years ago
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1337
Posts: 31078 - Karma: 29,667
lol canadians not understanding stupid US Pay-laws. I agree, its dumb, but it's legal
13 years ago
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mikk
Posts: 451 - Karma: 107
Thats the normal salary in estonia(europe) And the minimum is something like 2.5$/hour..
you guys are talking something like 40 $ in hour, thats fucking huge.

what are the taxes, food, water, electricity in your country?? I would be rich if i would earn 40 $per hour
13 years ago
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ImNotARacist
Posts: 5136 - Karma: -1,030
If you make tips, yes it is.



and to you canadians with your CAD minimum wage

Your cost for housing is twice as much as the USA.

Your clothing is almost twice as much etc. etc


On average I would say most everything is about 20%-30% more expensive
13 years ago
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moonofendor
Posts: 1484 - Karma: 14
I wish that was the case. I'll be happy if I make 60k my first year out as a chemical engineer.

And even at that I'd gladly take 45-50k depending on location and benefits.


 
13 years ago
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WinterStick
Posts: 234 - Karma: 100
Good luck at the new job, what are you doing?
13 years ago
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FUUUCK
Posts: 18426 - Karma: 4,899
You make $7 an hour in tips at a grocery store?

Click for larger image
13 years ago
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EastCoast315
Posts: 3136 - Karma: 138
$15/hr is great pay. It is less about accumulating money in order to fuel your current lifestyle, and more about fine-tuning your needs to those which cannot be bought. A man can survive for a year on two or three grand so long as he keeps moving, he takes the wastes of others, and he thrives on love, travel, brotherhood, and experience.
13 years ago
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FUUUCK
Posts: 18426 - Karma: 4,899
In the past 2 years:

The most I've made is $200/day prospecting (surprisingly similar to tree planting).

The least I've made is $10.25 an hour or close to that, I forget exactly. But I got to ski almost every day I wanted to.
13 years ago
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Guck
Posts: 528 - Karma: 221
i live on long island so all of the landscaping jobs are taken by mexicans. thanks for the advice though, i only hate it because the cost of living here is pretty ridiculous. i spend rarely and it's all savings, it would just be nice to be making more.
13 years ago
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northeast
Posts: 2119 - Karma: 254
that sounds like an awesome job.
13 years ago
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Jaymon
Posts: 860 - Karma: 1,213
Excavator operator - $24/hour
13 years ago
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SSteezle
Posts: 9458 - Karma: 2,357
I just landed a job doing videos for a company for $500/video. It looks as though i'll be averaging two videos a week.
13 years ago
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Raz.
Posts: 7456 - Karma: 1,611
I make $10 an hour, but I'm only 16 soooo...
13 years ago
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Leeyum
Posts: 1285 - Karma: 168
i call bullshit on alot of these wages haha
13 years ago
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californiagrown
Posts: 9794 - Karma: 2,014
masters wont let you make more in a lot of cases, because while you spend 2 years studying and learning, i spend 2 years making contacts, designing, and generally moving up the ladder. when you come back to the workforce you still have to start at the E1 level. Unless you can get your company to pay for your masters, i dont think its really worth it now a days. I can only speak for civil though.

And i work in the highest cost of living area outside of NYC in the country and i make a base salary of $52/year, but with overtime i make about $65/year.

The job market sucks, you gotta get what you can. everyone has that friend that is making $90+/year right out of college, but that is the exception, certainly not the rule.


Engineering isnt a good way to become rich. it has a really high floor, but a really low cieling compared to carreers in finance and buisness. thats why the only people making skrill in Engineering are the folks dealing with the buisness side; dealing with clients and bringing in new jobs. In about 3 years i will be making more than a bunch of 40 and 50 year olds in my company because i am not a technical person, and the upper managment sees that and envision a specific carreer path for me. the problem is, you have to learn and be baller at the technical side before you can go to the buisness side.


YOu gotta take what you can get, because experience is sooooooo valuable. i spent the first 3 months of my job feeling ridiculously stupid and lost. its only after about 4-5 months that i now feel productive and dont need my hand held constantly.


13 years ago
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masterhatin
Posts: 630 - Karma: 53
$30.75/hr no degree, suck my nuts!
13 years ago
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Willgum
Posts: 3254 - Karma: 3,066
Is that the rate for a Hj or Bj?
13 years ago
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Trojan~Man
Posts: 1996 - Karma: 1,357
what do you do?
13 years ago
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masterhatin
Posts: 630 - Karma: 53
spill tech in prudhoe bay, AK. im halfway lieing, its really $20/hr but OT is $30.75/hr but theres more OT then standard pay. just a summer gig sadly, back to the resort. lift operator = $10/hr
13 years ago
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Guck
Posts: 528 - Karma: 221
i'm confuzzled on how everybody under 18 is making over $10 an hour.
13 years ago
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.Ian.
Posts: 1568 - Karma: 72
I know, I wish I could make over $10 an hour.
13 years ago
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deleted5
Posts: 14507 - Karma: 13,510
hahahaha op didnt go to college and make more then you
13 years ago
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Nurgle
Posts: 1249 - Karma: 15
That depends on the McDonalds. My girlfriend works as a manager at McDonalds, making a fantastic 8.75. :p

And Ive been making $15 an hour as a warehouseman during my summers off
13 years ago
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