In this day and age $15/hr is scraping by. I'm having a hard time figuring out why some are considering this an excessive wage.

If you have a car payment or student loans and pay rent, there will be almost no ability for someone to save or invest money. This is especially true in Seattle where the cost of living is very high. This would explain why a record number of people in their 20s are living with their parents.

The underlying issue here is people aren't concerned about workers or the general populace; they're concerned about business owners' profit.