Wendy's, "dynamic pricing" and their subsequent "clarification"

[fskimospy]

Doesn't seem like it to me? Is that what you're getting out of my response? What led you to that conclusion?

Objective reality from people in the industry where fast food wages have rocketed up. Broadly speaking the wage compression liberals claimed they want happened. White collar workers are making less, fast food people making more.

This is a weird thing from liberals where they insist things are bad even when they got a lot better.

 

[pmv]

Do the employees pay rates go up during peak hours? I mean, they probably work harder, under greater pressure, at those times.

 

[nakedfrog]

Objective reality from people in the industry where fast food wages have rocketed up. Broadly speaking the wage compression liberals claimed they want happened. White collar workers are making less, fast food people making more.

This is a weird thing from liberals where they insist things are bad even when they got a lot better.

I don't understand what this has to do with anything I've said? Are you saying they SHOULD continue to raise prices, even though they've continued to see increased profits in the face of increased wages?
Also, are you lumping me in with "liberals"?

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

I do find it sort of funny that people have advocated for wage increases for low wage workers and are then mad when the products they make go up in price.

Like, what did you expect?

Oh don't get me wrong, I don't care, I don't eat fast food anyhow. I think people are more upset about the surge part though. Not like anyone had a riot about FF just costing $14 a meal or whatever it is now.

 

[fskimospy]

I don't understand what this has to do with anything I've said? Are you saying they SHOULD continue to raise prices, even though they've continued to see increased profits in the face of increased wages?
Also, are you lumping me in with "liberals"?

I’m saying that liberals (myself included) have called for wage compression for years, which inherently means fast food will become more relatively expensive.

I am totally ok with that. I’m also someone that recognizes this means the economy got way better for exactly the people we always wanted it to get better for. It’s ok to embrace success!

 

[ch33zw1z]

Pretty sure it’s across the board. I have a friend who was a hiring manager for a holding group that owned a ton of burger kings in North Carolina and they were jacking their wages way up.

I’d be curious what the numbers were for real though. I mean, we know that there’s some states increasing minimum wage and that we expected prices to rise in those states. But how are the states where minimum wage hasn’t increased.

I would expect surge pricing to make it to the increased minimums wage states long before the stagnant wage states

 

[fskimospy]

I’d be curious what the numbers were for real though. I mean, we know that there’s some states increasing minimum wage and that we expected prices to rise in those states. But how are the states where minimum wage hasn’t increased.

I would expect surge pricing to make it to the increased minimums wage states long before the stagnant wage states

It’s not about state minimum wage - it’s the companies voluntarily raising their wages to find workers.

This is the beauty of a truly tight labor market. The government doesn’t have to do anything, companies do it voluntarily.

 

[ch33zw1z]

It’s not about state minimum wage - it’s the companies voluntarily raising their wages to find workers.

This is the beauty of a truly tight labor market. The government doesn’t have to do anything, companies do it voluntarily.

would like to see the on paper though. FF and restaurant work in general was a minimum wage gig for most positions. Paying .50 more an hour so it’s not minimum wage isn’t what I mean either

 

[ch33zw1z]

Oh don't get me wrong, I don't care, I don't eat fast food anyhow. I think people are more upset about the surge part though. Not like anyone had a riot about FF just costing $14 a meal or whatever it is now.

Right, threads not really about rising prices…just surge prices on top of it.

 

[fskimospy]

would like to see the on paper though. FF and restaurant work in general was a minimum wage gig for most positions. Paying .50 more an hour so it’s not minimum wage isn’t what I mean either

Again my friend was a manager for a holding group owning a bunch of burger kings in North Carolina. They went from about $8 an hour to about $15.

Massive increases in income for the lowest paid people.

 

[Brainonska511]

Maybe it was in OT and not here, but surprised no one brought up Zoidberg's sandwich heavy portfolio when talking about shorting sandwiches.

Poorer people depend on FF to feed their families because it is cheap.

BK: Let's screw over those very people

Fast food meals are cheap, but certainly not as cheap as buying from a grocery store.

 

[Zorba]

Again my friend was a manager for a holding group owning a bunch of burger kings in North Carolina. They went from about $8 an hour to about $15.

Massive increases in income for the lowest paid people.

Yeah, around OKC I've seen several fast food places advertising $14+/hr. McDonalds will now give people a free meal if they drive someone in for an interview too, so parent can get a free value meal from bringing Jr in.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Again my friend was a manager for a holding group owning a bunch of burger kings in North Carolina. They went from about $8 an hour to about $15.

Massive increases in income for the lowest paid people.

Ok cool, NC hasn’t budged on their minimum wage either, so that’s good.

Pay increases have been a long time coming for the lowest paid workers.

So in states that have raised minimum wage, you would agree that contributes to increases in food prices, correct?

It will be interesting to see where this surge price idea goes. I know you don’t think it will pan out, but I’m not convinced it won’t.

I think there’s a good chance FF places will up their prices, then offer discounts during off peak hours. The public’s response to surge pricing was not good, but here’s a way that it can be accomplished and not be called surge, as it’s already tainted now. Either way, cats outta the bag lol

 

[ch33zw1z]

Do the employees pay rates go up during peak hours? I mean, they probably work harder, under greater pressure, at those times.

They might work harder during those hours, but also there tend to be more people on shift during those times as well (at least scheduled). So you might work the register most of the shift, or the grill, etc..

During the slow times, less people means more steps as your likely to cover more stations.

 

[dank69]

Maybe it was in OT and not here, but surprised no one brought up Zoidberg's sandwich heavy portfolio when talking about shorting sandwiches.

Fast food meals are cheap, but certainly not as cheap as buying from a grocery store.

Need to factor in prep/cook/cleanup time plus cooking equipment costs as well. Things many of us take for granted.

 

[Puffnstuff]

I'm fairly confident that if people wouldn't have spoken up this dynamic pricing scheme would've become a reality.

 

[Brainonska511]

Need to factor in prep/cook/cleanup time plus cooking equipment costs as well. Things many of us take for granted.

You don't buy new pots and pans for every meal, and lots of quick things to make. Heck, even buying frozen meals you self cook are cheaper than fast food.

 

[dank69]

You don't buy new pots and pans for every meal, and lots of quick things to make. Heck, even buying frozen meals you self cook are cheaper than fast food.

Yeah but you need to pay for the energy used by the stove/microwave/hot water heater every time. Of course it can be done but from a pure calorie per dollar standpoint, converting all time invested to some dollar amount, fast food will often be a pretty good value, especially if you take advantage of special offers and deals.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I'm fairly confident that if people wouldn't have spoken up this dynamic pricing scheme would've become a reality.

I am positive.
Also I still don’t think it is a bad thing however I do not know enough to say for sure.

 

[pmv]

You don't buy new pots and pans for every meal, and lots of quick things to make. Heck, even buying frozen meals you self cook are cheaper than fast food.

You do need to pay for the gas/electricity it uses though. And these days that's not insignificant. It's why I've stopped using the oven in favour of the microwave and air-fryer.

Actually, here, it seems it's the increase in those costs that have driven most of the increase in fast food prices. I don't think they are paying their employees any more, it's the operating costs for power, ingredients and cooking oil that have rocketed (and business rates also).

 

[Brainonska511]

Yeah but you need to pay for the energy used by the stove/microwave/hot water heater every time. Of course it can be done but from a pure calorie per dollar standpoint, converting all time invested to some dollar amount, fast food will often be a pretty good value, especially if you take advantage of special offers and deals.

You do need to pay for the gas/electricity it uses though. And these days that's not insignificant. It's why I've stopped using the oven in favour of the microwave and air-fryer.

Actually, here, it seems it's the increase in those costs that have driven most of the increase in fast food prices. I don't think they are paying their employees any more, it's the operating costs for power, ingredients and cooking oil that have rocketed (and business rates also).

Y'all must be taking crazy pills to be arguing that fast food is cheaper than cooking yourself. The energy costs, especially if you're in the US, are not prohibitively high.

But regardless, fast food consumption actually seems to be income-blind in the US: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...-its-actually-their-kids-who-eat-it-the-most/

The data also help to discredit the notion that fast food — or, at the very least, unhealthy food — only preys on the poor. The concept of food deserts, lower income areas where healthy food is scarce or expensive or both, has given rise to the idea that poorer populations rely on fast food out of necessity and convenience.
While there's evidence that income does appear to affect the relative nutritional value of foods people eat—food stamp participants, for instance, tend to procure the same amount of calories as everyone else but from substantially less healthy foods—there doesn't seem to be the same proof that that gap is attributable to fast food.

 

[pmv]

Y'all must be taking crazy pills to be arguing that fast food is cheaper than cooking yourself. The energy costs, especially if you're in the US, are not prohibitively high.

Well I'm not in the US. The energy costs are horrendously high (my per-kWH prices have more than quadrupled in the last couple of years...electric is currently about 30p/kWH, plus £20 a month charge just for having an electricity supply). Though fast food prices have, as I said, also gone up for the same reason.

Thing is, many low-income people don't have proper cooking facilities anyway.

There's also the time and (human) energy required to cook properly (that people doing long-hours at work don't have), and, a harder-to-measure factor, the fact that if you are an affluent middle-class person with other sources of entertainment and enjoyment, you are less likely to turn to unhealthy food for consolation. Probably the reason why it's always super-affluent tech and finance types who go in for trying to live forever via fasting (like our spectacularly out-of-touch billionaire PM).

 

[ch33zw1z]

Time needed to properly prepare and cleanup a meal is definitely a factor in whether or not someone orders out. With two working parents, and some parents working more than one job to barely make it, finding the time to plan, shop, prepare, and cleanup meals is very difficult.

I prepare essentially all my food at home. When I was a mobile employee, I was relying heavily on my wife to keep the food coming. I do much more of it for now, it’s exhausting sometimes lol. Always another dish to do, food to restock, or something to put in the shopping list!

 

[Zorba]

Yeah but you need to pay for the energy used by the stove/microwave/hot water heater every time. Of course it can be done but from a pure calorie per dollar standpoint, converting all time invested to some dollar amount, fast food will often be a pretty good value, especially if you take advantage of special offers and deals.

If you are going to fully burden cooking at home shouldn't you be doing the same with fast food, factoring in transportation, time spent waiting, and most importantly the negative health impacts?

 

[dank69]

If you are going to fully burden cooking at home shouldn't you be doing the same with fast food, factoring in transportation, time spent waiting, and most importantly the negative health impacts?

of course. all that needs to be factored in.