- 17 Sep 2024 05:59
#15325161
As some of you know, it is has become very difficult to be able to afford living in most major areas of the U.S. on a lower wage job. Some might say nearly impossible.
That got me thinking. Are wages for typical lower level jobs lower than they were 50 years ago, a time when the U.S. represented a "middle class country of opportunity"?
It turns out, the answer seems to be no.
I found an article here that shows that wage levels for typical lower level jobs in 1977 seem to be very comparable to today, when adjusted for official inflation numbers.
Kiplinger's Personal Finance - Google Books, page 19
average per hour
bookkeeping clerk $2.59
child-care worker $2.15
lifeguard $2.46
restaurant worker $2.19
gardener $2.42
This is from 1977. $2.50 in 1977 would be equivalent to $12.94 in 2024
It should be kept in mind this does not take into account the availability of higher paying union jobs, which used to be the mainstay of the male working class. That could be another discussion.
But nevertheless, this seems to suggest wage levels may not be the actual main problem.
The cost of housing, medical care, and college education seem to have increased by much more than the official inflation rate.
Some may be wondering if these wages were higher (adjusted for inflation) before 1977. That does not seem to be the case. A segment in the article dispels that:
"Campus wages and inflation
Since 1966, when Changing Times last surveyed campus jobs and what they pay, the average cost of a year at private college has risen about 75%, marching virtually in step with the country's general rate of inflation. Costs at public colleges have gone up 88%. Does this mean that part-time work will pay a smaller part of the bill in 1977 than it did in 1966?
Not necessarily. In fact, comparing median compensation for some popular campus jobs in the 1966 survey with median compensation for those same jobs today suggests just the opposite. Median pay for a clerk typist in 1966 was $1.15 per hour. This year they are being paid a median wage of $2.30 per hour, or 100% more. Comparisons for other popular jobs show the same pattern. Wages for food service workers went from $1 an hour to $2.30, a hefty 100% increase, and median pay for library assistants climbed from $1.10 to $2.30 an hour (a 109% increase); pay for mail clerks, faculty assistants and science lab assistants went from $1.25 to $2.30, representing an 84% increase."
But here is where the article seems to depart from the current reality:
"When you find a job, plan to give it ten to 15 hours per week, including some weekends. And, as Colorado State University comments, "Don't expect too much pay for so little work." It's not an easy way to go through college, but it can be done."
These days, working 15 hours a week at a low level job would barely pay for college expenses.
So the real questions (or issues) that we should be focusing on is why is housing and college education so much more expensive today?
That got me thinking. Are wages for typical lower level jobs lower than they were 50 years ago, a time when the U.S. represented a "middle class country of opportunity"?
It turns out, the answer seems to be no.
I found an article here that shows that wage levels for typical lower level jobs in 1977 seem to be very comparable to today, when adjusted for official inflation numbers.
Kiplinger's Personal Finance - Google Books, page 19
average per hour
bookkeeping clerk $2.59
child-care worker $2.15
lifeguard $2.46
restaurant worker $2.19
gardener $2.42
This is from 1977. $2.50 in 1977 would be equivalent to $12.94 in 2024
It should be kept in mind this does not take into account the availability of higher paying union jobs, which used to be the mainstay of the male working class. That could be another discussion.
But nevertheless, this seems to suggest wage levels may not be the actual main problem.
The cost of housing, medical care, and college education seem to have increased by much more than the official inflation rate.
Some may be wondering if these wages were higher (adjusted for inflation) before 1977. That does not seem to be the case. A segment in the article dispels that:
"Campus wages and inflation
Since 1966, when Changing Times last surveyed campus jobs and what they pay, the average cost of a year at private college has risen about 75%, marching virtually in step with the country's general rate of inflation. Costs at public colleges have gone up 88%. Does this mean that part-time work will pay a smaller part of the bill in 1977 than it did in 1966?
Not necessarily. In fact, comparing median compensation for some popular campus jobs in the 1966 survey with median compensation for those same jobs today suggests just the opposite. Median pay for a clerk typist in 1966 was $1.15 per hour. This year they are being paid a median wage of $2.30 per hour, or 100% more. Comparisons for other popular jobs show the same pattern. Wages for food service workers went from $1 an hour to $2.30, a hefty 100% increase, and median pay for library assistants climbed from $1.10 to $2.30 an hour (a 109% increase); pay for mail clerks, faculty assistants and science lab assistants went from $1.25 to $2.30, representing an 84% increase."
But here is where the article seems to depart from the current reality:
"When you find a job, plan to give it ten to 15 hours per week, including some weekends. And, as Colorado State University comments, "Don't expect too much pay for so little work." It's not an easy way to go through college, but it can be done."
These days, working 15 hours a week at a low level job would barely pay for college expenses.
So the real questions (or issues) that we should be focusing on is why is housing and college education so much more expensive today?
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