Minimum Wage

My Grandaddy worked on the Coolie dam,

My Daddy dreamed he'd work this land,

The dirt turned to dust and the river died

I'll be working in this factory, all my life

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They bust the union in '84,

You work for less or not at all

They got all the power they gonna need

Coming down the line from the Gran' Coolie

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​Chorus

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This town, on the minimum wage

My baby stacking shelves 10 hours a day

I been 10 years on this factory line

Call it a living, feels like dying

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I draw my pay on a Friday night

I buy cheap liquor, my baby cries

For the shame of being poor, and knowing there's no more

Just the minimum wage, and the charity store

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My Grandaddy sang to me

Woodie Guthrie song, Pastures of Plenty

And a new world coming for the working man

You take what you need, you do what you can.

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