I graduated high school in 1995 and worked in retail starting at $5.50 an hour. My manager was making $50,000 a year and I thought if I could get that income I would be set. If I work no overtime I make $67,000 a year as a cardiac RN. To have the same purchasing power for $50,000 in 1995 I need to make around $86,000. Therefore I have to work overtime/extra shifts to have that purchasing power.
The reported inflation is just not true. Sure you can buy cheap TVs and other electronics but you don't consume those products daily or even monthly. What we consume has exploded in prices over the decades and wages have not kept in pace. Lastly, when I enter the work force decades ago I could if I wanted to put my money in safe investments paying 4-6% interest. Now you lucky if the banks give you 0.5%. You really have no choice but to invest in equities, precious metals, start a business, or invest in real estate.
As far as minimum wage being increased to $15 an hour I'm not opposed but there will be negative consequences. In my hospital they pay their CNA or patient techs $16 an hour. Do you think a CNA will continue to work cleaning feces and urine off patients when they can make basically the same at a low skill job? Unless a "wage ripple" effect happens and raises all wages I don't see it being beneficial. Perhaps someone can point me to a study concerning this.