The total life cycle of any activity needs to be taken into account. For environmental issues, this means what do the constituent parts of a device return to and how. For human health issues, this means do the employers provide adequate pay and benefits to see that a full time worker never depends upon the government for benefits.
This isn’t about coddling, or freeloading. It’s about reducing the tax burden on everyone, because we are not supplementing low paying jobs with tax money through medicare or outreach programs. Things cost more, but taxes are less and people are healthier. Minor injuries do no become expensive major injuries. The only beneficiary of the current system is the employer who pays less in the short term and shares the long term health costs with his customers and employees through the tax roles. The real beneficiary is one who can seek relief from the taxes too and avoid the health cost entirely and take advantage of the worker completely.
A living wage isn’t just good for the individual, it’s good for the whole society. Costs are more easily accounted for. Workers feel better about themselves, reducing the chances or risky behavior like drug use and spousal abuse. In turn reducing the crime rate and the taxes involved incarcerating people. Government doesn’t have to manage as many people in payouts, reducing the 30+% premium on government distributed health benefits.
It is societally criminal to allow people to be paid a wage, which is not capable of support one’s food, home, and health. We have more resources and abilities than ever before in our known history. Why shouldn’t every full time worker have a home of some kind?
Government health benefits like Canada or Europe have decided to Medicare everyone. It’s great that they all have good benefits, but this supplements unhealthy industries and provides no incentive that would cause them to improve their health management attitudes. For example, coal companies could stop “requiring” respirators in the mine. The respirator is a cost to the company. The health problems aren’t.
Everyone should be cared for and companies should pay for it. The beneficiary of the employee’s services should pay for them. That includes the degradation that certain professions bring on the human body. Professional ball players are supposedly compensated for the gladiator style punishment inflicted on their bodies. Is there any less on plumbers, waitresses, roofers, or delivery men? Does anyone think these are easy jobs?