Ehrenreich issue 2
Here is the second issue from Nickel and Dimed. See the post below for instructions on how to respond.
2. Nearly one-fifth of all homeless people [in 29 American cities] are employed in full- or part-time jobs (Page 26).
2. Nearly one-fifth of all homeless people [in 29 American cities] are employed in full- or part-time jobs (Page 26).
posted by David at 6:53 PM
10 Comments:
This statement would seem true for 1997 and today. This matter is a concern for those who are homeless and trying to survive on little to nothing. It should be a concern to the community for the well-beings of these people and their differing situations.
This number seems accurate. The public should be extremely concerned that some people are working hard and still can not afford shelter.
this really shows how truley hard it is to climb the economic ladder in America. i feel that to many people are not realizing the imortance of education and are therefore forced to work in dead end jobs for little pay
These numbers only represent a small part of the country, just 29 cities. The numbers would probably change if the research covered more area. However, these numbers do show how poorly businesses are paying their employees. When it’s the only job the homeless can get, however, they have to take it.
This statement appears accurate. I like what Jeff stated when he said the people that don't get an education are forced to get low paying jobs.
These numbers do not surprise me at all. It is not always that they are not making enough money to survive, but that they are spending their money in foolish ways. A big part of this is that many of these people spend their money on drugs, alcohol, gambling, or other stupid investments.
It is true that many people are probably using this money on drugs. However, there are enough people that are using it to try to support families. Full or part-time jobs at minimum wage just don’t cut it. These jobs, unless minimum wage is increased, will not allow a single mother to support her children or even herself. Just because people are homeless does not mean that they are lazy and do not have jobs.
I believe this because it's not that hard to get a minimum wage job. It is hard to get a place to live though. You often need credit and/or something, like a car, to fall back on if you can't make payments, and being homeless, you can't do this. I definately agree with Luke that they do tend to waste money on dumb stuff like drugs and alcohol. I don't agree with Jeff because you don't need an education to get a good job. Sure it helps, but there are ways around it. My dad (like many farmers), is always looking for help, pays good and you get a lot of hours. Starting out, he pays $12/hour and from March til about October, you can get as many hours as you want. Trucking, farming, ranching, fixing and cleaning vehicles, and many other things. After October, you are still garenteed about 40 hours a week. A high school drop out worked for us for a while and was making over $500 a week. It's just a matter of how hard you are willing to work.
These numbers scares me and I don't think we should fully rely on them. As Haley said; "The numbers would probably change if the research covered more area." However I have come to realize that it is almost impossible to live a decent life on a minimum wage salary.
like haley said, this is only a small part of the country. but I believe these numbers. someone has to do the low paying jobs, generally they are the uneducated and homeless.
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