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Teen opens his first paycheck from McDonald's and his reaction is so relatable

There's nothing like the pride of that first paycheck.

u/ExactlySorta/Reddit

A teen was elated getting his first paycheck from McDonald's.

There are certain moments and milestones in life that hit harder than others. There are the biggies, of course—graduations, weddings, births, etc.—but there are also the smaller-but-still-significant ones that mark a major shift in life, when you officially cross a threshold into a whole new stage in your life's journey.

A mom captured one of those moments on video as her teen son opened his first paycheck from his job at McDonald's.

The video shared on Reddit shows a teen in a McDonald's hat sitting in the passenger seat of a car opening an envelope that contained his paycheck. His mom said it should be "200-and something" dollars, and after a hilariously long struggle to open the envelope (these Gen Zers have never snail mailed, no judgment), he looks over the check stub to get the full picture.

"That's $283," he says in astonishment. To his credit, he asks "After tax, what's that?" not realizing that the amount of the check is the after-tax take home amount. His smile and laughter says it all.

Watch:

"Let's take it to the bank, then!" Heck yeah, kid.

People are remembering with fondness their own first paychecks

Many viral videos of first paycheck reveals include complaints about how much is taken out it in taxes, so it's refreshing to see this young man's joy at his after-tax pay. It was a beautiful moment to capture on film, as most of us remember that feeling of empowerment that came with our own first real paychecks.

People in the comments are feeling the nostalgia:

"I remember that feeling - pretty sweet to see money you earned yourself. Feels good earning your own cash."

"God that first paycheck felt so unreal. I will never forget you ace hardware."

"I remember my first paycheck was for like $300 after two weeks of being a counselor and I felt RICH. I immediately spent it all on a guitar that I still have 20 years later."

"I remember mine - from my first proper job. £64.29 in a little brown packet with holes in it to see the cash inside. 1980. 😂"

"My first “paycheck” was like $65, I was so proud. I took my mom to pizzeria to treat her and she was very very touched."

"Man… I remember my first paycheck… 23 years ago now. For two weeks of what limited hours I could work being 14 years old… that baby was $96.19! HO-LY smokes was I on cloud 9. Cashed it right there at work and bought myself a bag of Skittles. It was a good day."

via GIPHY

Ah, to be young and unencumbered by adult expenses

Part of what makes this endearing is the innocence of it. As a teen, he's not worried about affording a mortgage or groceries or diapers or retirement savings. His elation over making $283 is adorable because he's just starting down the path of adulthood. Soon enough, that paycheck will seem small, but he's not there yet.

When you're a kid, money is kind of an abstract concept. Maybe you get a small allowance or get paid a few bucks for odd jobs, and opening a birthday card with some cash in it is exciting. It's not until you're fully into the working world for a while that the regular flow of money and what it means for your life really sinks in.

And it's not until you're a fully independent adult that you really grasp how relative your feelings about your paycheck can be. There's a big difference between being a 16-year-old getting your first paycheck and being a 30-year-old trying to raise a family on wages that don't cover all your needs. Things like cost-of-living and inflation start to actually mean something as you get older and experience their impact. You might find that you can make a lot more money and yet feel poorer than ever as expenses pile up into adulthood.

i.giphy.com

Don't we all wish we could go back to the hopeful, happy days of making our first real chunk of money before all of those grown-up concerns arose? That simple sense of pride in having worked hard and earned something. The excitement of being able to pay for something you want yourself. The sense of freedom that comes with those early earnings. We see and feel all of that in this teen's bright smile, and it's glorious.

He may not realize how different he might feel opening his paycheck down the road, but there's no need to tell him yet. We don't need to ruin this moment with "just you wait." He'll find out soon enough, as we all have, so let's just let him enjoy this moment of bliss. He's earned it.

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Minneapolis just raised its minimum wage. Watch Congressman Keith Ellison celebrate.

On the morning of Friday, June 30, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minnesota) got some pleasant news about a policy he's long supported: increasing the minimum wage.

After learning the Minneapolis city council agreed on plans to raise the city's minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2024, Ellison recorded a celebratory video for his constituents, picking up a guitar and singing a version of "Money (That's What I Want)."

"I've been marching for my 15," sings Ellison. "Gettin' paid, now that's what I mean. I need money. That's what I want."

While he likely doesn't have any Grammys in his future, watching Ellison joyously sing is delightful — even more so because it's for an incredible societal win.

"Today, Minneapolis took a big step toward renewing the promise of the American Dream," Ellison posted to his Facebook page.

"'The American Dream' should mean that in a country this prosperous, nobody who works for their living should live in poverty. Yet today, working a full-time job at minimum wage doesn’t lift an American worker out of poverty — it keeps her in it."

Ellison speaks at a 2013 demonstration calling on for a minimum wage increase. Photo by Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images.

At a certain point, the minimum wage was enough to keep a family of three out of poverty. Now, it's not enough for a single person to afford a two-bedroom apartment in the U.S.

Minimum wage hasn't kept up with inflation, and as a result, many full-time employees earning it struggle to get by. Income inequality and profit distribution will continue to change in the years to come. It's important for government officials to find ways to adjust and help Americans reach their potential. We must fight to protect the core American values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

As Ellison said: Working a minimum-wage job should be a stepping stone out of poverty instead of the reason people are stuck in it.

The fight for a $15 minimum wage is a start, not a finish.

But today, let's enjoy a little music.

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Iceland just announced a no-nonsense plan to eliminate its wage gap in 5 years.

On Oct. 24, 2016, thousands of Iceland's women stopped working at 2:38 p.m.

At the time, the country's men were earning an average of 18% more for doing the same jobs.

So women decided they were going to work 18% fewer hours (hence walking off the job at 2:38 p.m.) for a day to prove a powerful point.

Thousands took off early and poured into the streets to voice their displeasure with the wage gap (which, hey, is actually a lot better than in most of the world but still needs to be fixed).

In early March 2017, not even five months later, things may finally be changing, in no small part thanks to the work of these protestors.

Government officials in Iceland just announced new legislation that would require companies to open their books and prove they're providing equal pay for equal work.

According to USA Today, the measure is expected to be approved by parliament because lawmakers across the political spectrum all agree that the wage gap needs to be fixed ASAP.

(That must be nice.)

"Equal rights are human rights," said Social Affairs and Equality Minister Thorsteinn Viglundsson. "We need to make sure that men and women enjoy equal opportunity in the workplace. It is our responsibility to take every measure to achieve that."

Iceland won't be the first nation to enforce equal pay, but its policy is considered to be one of the most aggressive yet as it targets any company, public or private, with at least 25 employees.

The government is hoping measures like this one will help to completely eradicate the pay gap in the next five years.

This is a massive victory, not just for women, but for the power of engaged citizens who refuse to accept inequality.

The news out of Iceland comes hot off the heels of A Day Without a Woman, which called for women all over the world to strike — from work, from home duties, from the multitude of tasks they juggle day in and day out — to make their value known to the world in no uncertain terms.

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A post shared by Áslaug Lárusdóttir (@aslauglar_) on

Critics of the strike questioned its ability to make a difference since turnout would be smaller and more scattered than the massive Women's March that took place shortly after Inauguration Day.

But the citizens of Iceland are proof-positive that public demonstrations can and do work. It sounds trite, but when enough people come together to make their voices heard, people in power have no choice but to listen. Even if it seems like they're not.

Change may not happen overnight, or even in five months as it did in Iceland, but as the saying goes, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

Sometimes, the arc just needs a couple thousand badass women forcing it to bend a little more quickly.

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5 'Big Bang Theory' actors agree to a pay cut so their female co-stars can earn more.

When two of the female co-stars of "The Big Bang Theory" stood up for equal pay, their coworkers didn't just mumble the usual supportive platitudes.

Cast members of "The Big Bang Theory." Photo by Mark Davis/Getty Images.

According to a report in Variety, the show's five original cast members each agreed to take a $100,000 per episode pay cut so that Melissa Rauch and Mayim Bialick — who joined the cast in season three — could get a raise.

Rauch (left) and Bialick. Photo by Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images.

The show's original (and predominately male) stars — Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kunal Nayyar, Simon Helberg, and Kaley Cuoco — currently make a staggering $1 million per episode while Bialick and Rauch earn much less at $200,000.

With an extra $500,000 per episode allocated to the two women, their salaries would rise to $450,000 — less than half of what the original five actors presently earn but more than double their original rate. Contract negotiations are ongoing.

As in many industries, women in TV and movies are frequently paid less than their male co-stars.

While none of "The Big Bang Theory" players are hurting for cash regardless of the pay disparity, not all actors make bank like the stars of a hit network TV show going on 10 seasons. And if pay inequality can happen to people on the higher end of the pay scale, where they have agents and managers advocating on their behalf, it can (and does) happen to people at all levels of pay.

That gap reflects, among other inequities, female actors' shorter earnings peak and fewer opportunities to star in big-budget film franchises and hit TV shows. Part of the reason Rauch and Bialick earn so much less than their castmates is because the show only added them to its male-dominated lineup three seasons into its run (though they officially became part of the main cast in season four).

Often, even big female stars find themselves earning less for similar work.

Amy Adams (left) and Jennifer Lawrence. Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In 2015, Sony found itself embroiled in scandal after hacked e-mails revealed that "American Hustle" leads Bradley Cooper and Jeremy Renner were paid more than Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence, who was nominated for an Oscar for her role.

Women who ask for raises tend to get them less often — across a wide variety of fields.

A 2016 study by the University of Wisconsin, the University of Warwick, and Cass University found that although women ask for pay increases at roughly the same rate as men, they get them 25% less frequently. Additional research shows that women who do ask are perceived as "greedy" more often than their male colleagues.

Bialick and Rauch are reportedly continuing to press Warner Bros. TV and CBS to get closer to actual parity. And more women in Hollywood are speaking out about unfair treatment.

Scarlett Johansson recently revealed to Marie Claire magazine that her status as highest-grossing actress of all time "does not mean I'm the highest paid." And after the "American Hustle" scandal broke, Jennifer Lawrence was even more blunt about advocating for herself going forward in a letter published in Lenny:

"I'm over trying to find the 'adorable' way to state my opinion and still be likable! Fuck that. I don't think I've ever worked for a man in charge who spent time contemplating what angle he should use to have his voice heard."

Hopefully, "The Big Bang Theory" negotiations are evidence that more men in the industry are finally waking up to what their female colleagues have struggled with for years.

Photo by Monty Brinton/CBS.

The fact that the show's four men — and one woman — are opening up their own pocketbooks in support of their co-stars is an encouraging sign.

As more movie and TV stars start talking a big game about supporting pay equity, some are finally putting their money where their mouth is.

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