How many hours must minimum-wage earners work to afford rent?

[R.D.]

80 hours or less per week? No one should have to work that many hours to afford rent. 40 hours should be the maximum for full time minimum wage employees. Good God, do people not have a life over there?

then they best get a few roommates and stop whining.

I you really hate your standard of living.... they should work 120 hours a week to make it better for themselves.

anything else is just lazy and wanting a lifestyle they cant afford handed to them..... becasue they WANT it.

8 hours is a comfortable working life. Anything else should be optional. I don't understand why people would work 18 hours a day and neglect their families.

There's a lot you don't understand

For example, fines you can't afford to pay

 

[alan1]

IF you have been doing the same minimum wage job for more than two years, and you are not in high school, the problem is not the wage you are making.

2 years? That's a lot of slack.
I had my first job at 13 and it paid more than minimum wage. I've never had a minimum wage job, neither did any of my siblings or children.

 

[Darkwind]

IF you have been doing the same minimum wage job for more than two years, and you are not in high school, the problem is not the wage you are making.

2 years? That's a lot of slack.
I had my first job at 13 and it paid more than minimum wage. I've never had a minimum wage job, neither did any of my siblings or children.

Well, the discussion is about minimum wage workers who can't afford rent. So, the assumption is that we are talking about people who have a minimum wage job.

So, if you have been doing the same minimum wage job for more than two years (I'll make a small allowance for the Obama economy), and you are not in high school, then, as I said. The problem is not with the wage you are earning.

 

[alan1]

8 hours is a comfortable working life. Anything else should be optional. I don't understand why people would work 18 hours a day and neglect their families.

I don't understand why some fool would create a family he/she couldn't afford to take care of on the wage they earned.

exactly, but hey that's our fault too so we need to bow to their demands and GIVE them this thing called a LIVING wage...
I've never seen this country so full of helpless people...

I'm not so sure how helpless they are since since they seem so willing to help themselves to the fruits of other peoples labor.

 

[kiwiman127]

then they best get a few roommates and stop whining.

I you really hate your standard of living.... they should work 120 hours a week to make it better for themselves.

anything else is just lazy and wanting a lifestyle they cant afford handed to them..... becasue they WANT it.

8 hours is a comfortable working life. Anything else should be optional. I don't understand why people would work 18 hours a day and neglect their families.

I don't understand why some fool would create a family he/she couldn't afford to take care of on the wage they earned.

You do understand that millions of people lost everything from the Great Recession and many of those jobs aren't coming back. They have either been shipped off shore or robotics took their job. Most people didn't plan their families knowing about how shaky our economy really was. Our government never admitted our economy was in big trouble until October 2007. Up till then we were told our economy was solid.
Quit blaming the working class. I get so fucking sick of that shit.

 

[Pop23]

Rent in Australia is almost 50% higher than here.

$700 per month here is $1,050 there or $350 more

At $15.00 per hour you work 23.3 hours per month just to pay the difference?

And that's just rent

Source:

Cost Of Living Comparison Between United States And Australia

 

[Stephanie]

Well what do you expect when you go to college and study something useless, like women's studies, racism in American history

those should get jobs in................. FAST FOOD...bravo all that money you wasted

but you got that DEGREE maybe you can sell it to live off of

 

[Noomi]

Well what do you expect when you go to college and study something useless, like women's studies, racism in American history

those should get jobs in................. FAST FOOD...bravo all that money you wasted

but you got that DEGREE maybe you can sell it to live off of

A degree doesn't necessarily mean you will get a job. Half the time they are not worth the paper they are written on. You can have a degree but still be a total deadshit.

 

[Noomi]

Rent in Australia is almost 50% higher than here.

$700 per month here is $1,050 there or $350 more

At $15.00 per hour you work 23.3 hours per month just to pay the difference?

And that's just rent

Source:

Cost Of Living Comparison Between United States And Australia

We get paid more, that is why it seems we pay more for everything. It would work out around the same. You earn less, you pay less.

 

[Stephanie]

Well what do you expect when you go to college and study something useless, like women's studies, racism in American history

those should get jobs in................. FAST FOOD...bravo all that money you wasted

but you got that DEGREE maybe you can sell it to live off of

A degree doesn't necessarily mean you will get a job. Half the time they are not worth the paper they are written on. You can have a degree but still be a total deadshit.

well my young friend, we finally agree on something
good for you for seeing the real world and how we don't want to give up our god given rights and freedoms to have other's take care of us..If that take's working a lot of hours it's worth to some of us..

 

[Pop23]

Rent in Australia is almost 50% higher than here.

$700 per month here is $1,050 there or $350 more

At $15.00 per hour you work 23.3 hours per month just to pay the difference?

And that's just rent

Source:

Cost Of Living Comparison Between United States And Australia

We get paid more, that is why it seems we pay more for everything. It would work out around the same. You earn less, you pay less.

Um, yea. That's the point I believe.

 

[CrusaderFrank]

The more Democratic leaning states that are always championing a higher minimum wage also tend to be the least affordable places for minimum wage workers to live. On the flip side, the Republican leaning states who generally oppose increasing the minimum wage consequently are the most affordable places for that demographic to live.

How many hours must minimum-wage earners work to afford rent?

They have to pay their ObamaCare premium too

 

[R.D.]

Rent in Australia is almost 50% higher than here.

$700 per month here is $1,050 there or $350 more

At $15.00 per hour you work 23.3 hours per month just to pay the difference?

And that's just rent

Source:

Cost Of Living Comparison Between United States And Australia

We get paid more, that is why it seems we pay more for everything. It would work out around the same. You earn less, you pay less.

No. You pay more because it costs more. That your minimum is more only means you'll spend more for the same goods. They got you and you don't even know it. On one hand your proud you make 18 an hour on the other you're still only a minimum wage earner.

 

[alan1]

8 hours is a comfortable working life. Anything else should be optional. I don't understand why people would work 18 hours a day and neglect their families.

I don't understand why some fool would create a family he/she couldn't afford to take care of on the wage they earned.

You do understand that millions of people lost everything from the Great Recession and many of those jobs aren't coming back. They have either been shipped off shore or robotics took their job. Most people didn't plan their families knowing about how shaky our economy really was. Our government never admitted our economy was in big trouble until October 2007. Up till then we were told our economy was solid.
Quit blaming the working class. I get so fucking sick of that shit.

Just pointing out how ridiculous the claims are.
It's not like some family with an $80k income is suddenly on minimum wage jobs. It's people that already had minimum wage jobs then created a family that are sniveling about poor wages. They created their situation, not me, not some supposedly evil corporation and not government, they did it to themselves.
If yer "so fucking sick of that shit", feel free to offer your own assistance to help them out. I won't stand in your way.

 

[syrenn]

8 hours is a comfortable working life. Anything else should be optional. I don't understand why people would work 18 hours a day and neglect their families.

I don't understand why some fool would create a family he/she couldn't afford to take care of on the wage they earned.

You do understand that millions of people lost everything from the Great Recession and many of those jobs aren't coming back. They have either been shipped off shore or robotics took their job. Most people didn't plan their families knowing about how shaky our economy really was. Our government never admitted our economy was in big trouble until October 2007. Up till then we were told our economy was solid.
Quit blaming the working class. I get so fucking sick of that shit.

agreed... and i would also bet same said people are unwilling to downsize or give up the standard of living ....they want to keep but can no longer afford.

they don't NEED a 3 bedroom house..... a one bedroom apartment would do just fine.

 

[kiwiman127]

I don't understand why some fool would create a family he/she couldn't afford to take care of on the wage they earned.

You do understand that millions of people lost everything from the Great Recession and many of those jobs aren't coming back. They have either been shipped off shore or robotics took their job. Most people didn't plan their families knowing about how shaky our economy really was. Our government never admitted our economy was in big trouble until October 2007. Up till then we were told our economy was solid.
Quit blaming the working class. I get so fucking sick of that shit.

Just pointing out how ridiculous the claims are.
It's not like some family with an $80k income is suddenly on minimum wage jobs. It's people that already had minimum wage jobs then created a family that are sniveling about poor wages. They created their situation, not me, not some supposedly evil corporation and not government, they did it to themselves.
If yer "so fucking sick of that shit", feel free to offer your own assistance to help them out. I won't stand in your way.

I already do. I do volunteer work work for Goodwill and Catholic Charities in the Twin Cites, eight to ten hours a week. Plus my wife and our neighbors put together a block rummage sale and all proceeds go to the Salvation Army and Food Shelves.
I was brought up in a Christian home that followed the Bible's teachings about helping the poor. I've been doing it ever since.

 

[Pop23]

Rent in Australia is almost 50% higher than here.

$700 per month here is $1,050 there or $350 more

At $15.00 per hour you work 23.3 hours per month just to pay the difference?

And that's just rent

Source:

Cost Of Living Comparison Between United States And Australia

We get paid more, that is why it seems we pay more for everything. It would work out around the same. You earn less, you pay less.

I need to make a correction

Rent is over 60% higher in Australia

See, when wages increase so do prices

Increasing minimum wage is a net zero gain. It makes no sense.

 

[MeBelle]

Rent in Australia is almost 50% higher than here.

$700 per month here is $1,050 there or $350 more

At $15.00 per hour you work 23.3 hours per month just to pay the difference?

And that's just rent

Source:

Cost Of Living Comparison Between United States And Australia

Domestic Beer (0.5 liter draught) 3.50 $ 5.49 $ +56.76 %
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle) 5.00 $ 6.86 $ +37.16 %

Deal breaker for ya!

 

[Stephanie]

Rent in Australia is almost 50% higher than here.

$700 per month here is $1,050 there or $350 more

At $15.00 per hour you work 23.3 hours per month just to pay the difference?

And that's just rent

Source:

Cost Of Living Comparison Between United States And Australia

Domestic Beer (0.5 liter draught) 3.50 $ 5.49 $ +56.76 %
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle) 5.00 $ 6.86 $ +37.16 %

Deal breaker for ya!

what a life I want to live...pay out the ass for comforts of everyday life so I can support the government so they can support it's people...that's not what I call, freedom

 

[SteadyMercury]

Here's the perfect link for you. It expalins in detail exactly what I'm posting and confirms my statement.

It certainly does not.

It is using an average hourly wage of a subset of workers that are private, non-supervisory and production. There are millions of middle class Americans in supervisory and non-production roles, and millions who work for the some form of government. There is no reason to arbitrarily exclude them from the definition of typical worker.

Bottom line the inidivudal median income (the worker where half the people make more, and half make less) is much higher today in constant dollars than in the 1970s. Your claim that wages are lower in real terms for the typical American is false.