There was a line of job seekers around the block at In-n-Out burger the other day. They pay $17/hr with paid time off, health/dental/vision and a 401(k) plan. The burgers are still $3.
I've always wondered how local/regional chains, In-n-Out/Dicks, tend to be as cheap as national ones while usually having better food and paying much better than national chains.
Usually they are also in higher COL areas as well so I'd assume they pay more in Tax/Rent etc.
Don't know about all small businesses that provide quality employment and a quality product at low price while remaining in business, but In n Out is famously family owned by an extremely religious family with no desire to grow fast, take over their industry, or go public to turn investors into multibillionaires. They don't even have investors. Perfectly happy to just be ordinary millionaires and share the value of the company with their employees.
Rents might be high in Southern California, but the bulk of their rapid expansion was in the 70s and 80s when land was still reasonably cheap and they may actually own many of their own buildings.
Maybe they do, but I checked the ones in my county and the sites are owned by East Coast REITs. I'm sure they are able to negotiate reasonable long-term leases, of course.
They are privately held. I think it's safe to assume the owners are taking a smaller profit in order to maintain quality and treat their employees well.
Lack of advertising, far smaller menu, and motivated workers. I really wish Americans would stop choosing objectively worse food (McDonalds) over In-n-Out...
That being said, it's long been time for In-n-Out to stop using American cheese and switch to Cheddar, but that's a whole industry problem...
High paying fast food jobs are probably the exception not the norm.
Relying on low skill jobs to provide higher compensation without changing the underlying value prop of the employee seems to undermine fundamental economic principles.
Well, we need to turn that thinking around or our country will be (more) completely fucked. We need people who cook food and build houses and dig trenches, so we need to figure out how to make those people well-enough paid to live a life with dignity. There are tons of "low-skill" jobs that just need to get done.
There are low skilled cooks and high skilled cooks. A fast food worker is low skilled, as in, without prior skills a new entrant could do the task to a similar level of proficiency as someone who has experience.
Cooks at higher end restaurants, however, are skilled jobs. It takes years of knowledge and practice to master some culinary techniques, hence they are harder to replace, their work product can be sold for greater profit, and the individual will be able to obtain higher pay.
The same applies construction and most Amy other industry. Some jobs are low skilled, not requiring prior experience or skill, but many are skilled and can demand higher wages. This system incentivizes the individual to learn new skills, gain knowledge, try new things, and thereby gain a access to opportunities that pay higher wages.
Usually they are also in higher COL areas as well so I'd assume they pay more in Tax/Rent etc.