> the difference is that I can do the minimum wage job and they couldn't do mine
[citation needed]
A lot of low-wage work is skilled physical labor. I for one would need months to years of physical training before I would be strong enough to perform many of those jobs, and then it would take me months to years of practice before I could do them efficiently and effectively.
If you were to give a day laborer the same amount of time to learn to code, they might be a pretty competent developer.
I was able to be productive in a day at McDonald's. At the joints factory, in an hour for my main task, and 5-10 minutes for the others. I think skilled physical labor (plumbing for example) is usually very well paid (I live in France so maybe that's the cause?). Do you have examples of skilled physical labor which is still minimum wage?
Your argument about physical fitness and "mental" fitness makes sense though, that's something I didn't consider. Thanks for the insight.
[citation needed]
A lot of low-wage work is skilled physical labor. I for one would need months to years of physical training before I would be strong enough to perform many of those jobs, and then it would take me months to years of practice before I could do them efficiently and effectively.
If you were to give a day laborer the same amount of time to learn to code, they might be a pretty competent developer.