[ineedasername]

This is an extension of prison labor.

Work in prisons is often not optional, and if it is the inmate may not earn "good behavior" time if they choose not to work. It also averages something like $0.60/hour across the country.

I don't think $17/hour & mandatory sobriety are anything close to prison labor, but I will grant you that it isn't consistent or fair to fire someone that tests positive for marijuana if they weren't high at the time of the accident. Is there a way to test if someone is currently high on weed vs. has simply had some recently?

[robocat]

> It also averages something like $0.60/hour across the country

Is that equivalent to disposable income? What percentage of people in the US are left with $24 (or less) disposable after 40 hours minimum wage?

I had a friend who was left with NZD20 to spend on themselves after a full week of work (after food, shared rent, power, and other true expenses; non-smoker with zero savings of any kind).

[ineedasername]

Without overtime, $17/hour works out to nearly the exact personal median wage in the US, and I don't think that making more than 50% of the population is a situation that can be accurately compared to forced prison labor.

So, yes: Some people have no disposable income at all. Some live in debt. Sometimes they have no choice, sometimes it's poor planning. None of that is the equivalent of forced labor, Or longer imprisonment if the prisoner chooses not to work.

To be clear though, I haven't done a thorough examination of my own opinion on the ethics of prison labor, wages, etc. I'm not stating an opinion on that one way or another. I'm just saying that it is not a valid target of comparison against Amazon's wages in this case.