"Nickel and Dimed", by Barbara Ehrenreich; Ms. Ehrenreich was a good well educated woman and wanted to find out what was really going on in the real world. The Chapter that I felt comfortable in writing about was 2, Scrubbing in Maine. Barbara, looked around for some reasonable housing in this area and decided on the Blue Maven Hotel on Route 1 for $120.00 a week with a bed/living area with a kitchen, linens and a t.v. that has cable temporarily till they turn it off. She gets a job at anursing home making $7.00 an hour and another job as a maid making $6.65 an hour.
According to the living wage calculater, she is on survival mode for one adult, with both jobs she is making $13.65 an hour working to jobs just to survive. I feel that her experiences and the odd jobs that she takes to see how the other half works is quite disheartning and her research and the abuse that is experienced to prove something of living wages that is going on today, only now we don't even have manufacturing companies anymore.
Living Wage Calculation for Old Orchard Beach CDP, York County, Maine
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The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual must earn to
support their family, if they are the sole provider and are working
full-time (2080 hours per year). The state minimum wage is the same for all
individuals, regardless of how many dependents they may have. The poverty
rate is typically quoted as gross annual income. We have converted it to an
hourly wage for the sake of comparison. Wages that are less than the living
wage are shown in red.
| Hourly Wages |
1 Adult |
1 Adult, 1 Child |
1 Adult, 2 Children |
1 Adult, 3 Children |
2 Adults |
2 Adults, 1 Child |
2 Adults, 2 Children |
2 Adults, 3 Children |
| Living Wage |
$10.03 |
$22.65 |
$27.13 |
$33.54 |
$15.66 |
$19.93 |
$21.37 |
$25.05 |
| Poverty Wage |
$5.21 |
$7.00 |
$8.80 |
$10.60 |
$7.00 |
$8.80 |
$10.60 |
$12.40 |
| Minimum Wage |
$7.50 |
$7.50 |
$7.50 |
$7.50 |
$7.50 |
$7.50 |
$7.50 |
$7.50 |
Typical Expenses
These figures show the individual expenses that went into the living
wage estimate. Their values vary by family size, composition, and
the current location.
| Monthly Expenses |
1 Adult |
1 Adult, 1 Child |
1 Adult, 2 Children |
1 Adult, 3 Children |
2 Adults |
2 Adults, 1 Child |
2 Adults, 2 Children |
2 Adults, 3 Children |
| Food |
$242 |
$357 |
$536 |
$749 |
$444 |
$553 |
$713 |
$904 |
| Child Care |
$0 |
$638 |
$958 |
$1,279 |
$0 |
$0 |
$0 |
$0 |
| Medical |
$135 |
$447 |
$462 |
$446 |
$306 |
$437 |
$419 |
$427 |
| Housing |
$721 |
$1,109 |
$1,109 |
$1,397 |
$856 |
$1,109 |
$1,109 |
$1,397 |
| Transportation |
$262 |
$509 |
$587 |
$629 |
$509 |
$587 |
$629 |
$640 |
| Other |
$79 |
$189 |
$240 |
$311 |
$131 |
$173 |
$195 |
$225 |
| Required monthly income after taxes |
$1,439 |
$3,249 |
$3,892 |
$4,811 |
$2,246 |
$2,859 |
$3,065 |
$3,593 |
| Required annual income after taxes |
$17,268 |
$38,988 |
$46,704 |
$57,732 |
$26,952 |
$34,308 |
$36,780 |
$43,116 |
| Annual taxes |
$3,600 |
$8,127 |
$9,736 |
$12,035 |
$5,618 |
$7,152 |
$7,667 |
$8,988 |
| Required annual income before taxes |
$20,868 |
$47,115 |
$56,440 |
$69,767 |
$32,570 |
$41,460 |
$44,447 |
$52,104 |
Typical Hourly Wages
These are the typical hourly rates for various professions in this location.
Wages that are below the living wage for one adult supporting one child
are marked in red.
| Occupational Area |
Typical Hourly Wage |
| Management |
$33.85 |
| Business and Financial Operations |
$25.23 |
| Computer and Mathematical |
$28.46 |
| Architecture and Engineering |
$28.94 |
| Life, Physical and social Science |
$23.68 |
| Community and Social Services |
$17.51 |
| Legal |
$26.86 |
| Education, Training and Library |
$18.97 |
| Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media |
$15.52 |
| Healthcare Practitioner and Technical |
$27.45 |
| Healthcare Support |
$11.74 |
| Protective Service |
$15.76 |
| Food Preparation and Serving Related |
$9.05 |
| Building and Grounds Cleaning and maintenance |
$11.59 |
| Personal care and Services |
$10.17 |
| Sales and Related |
$11.19 |
| Office and Administrative Support |
$14.02 |
| Farming, Fishing and Forestry |
$14.15 |
| Construction and Extraction |
$17.38 |
| Installation, Maintenance and Repair |
$18.68 |
| Production |
$15.56 |
| Transportation and Material Moving |
$13.33 |
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