This is a troubling Tea Party meme, one that claims you’re lucky to get the “minimum” you already have because you ARE “minimum” – in terms of skills, education, motivation and contribution to the workplace. So (in effect) – once you are defined as “minimum” – shut up and don’t complain, and be happy with what little you’re already getting!
But in whose estimation is someone being labelled here as “minimum”? Answer: those who are making the rules – i.e., not those who are being paid a minimum wage! Is that valid?
The Here and the Hereafter 