Most people believe that the average company has more than a 35 percent profit margin, and so can afford to pay for a massive wage hike out of its profits. This is so far from correct as to be laughable, or at least it would be if the ramifications weren’t so severe. The average U.S. company’s profit margin is less than 8 percent. And businesses that employ large numbers of low-skilled workers, like retailers and restaurants, have profit margins closer to 2 percent. It is unlikely that such businesses are making anywhere near enough to afford to pay for a hefty wage hike out of their profits.